Shadows Upon The Soul
by belphegorluv
Summary: Two girls. Two personalities. The innocent girl with a complex past, or the mysterious, straight-forward girl? When both get tangled in Mukuro's life, how will he react? Mukuro's past has been horrid, yet it was the one that brought him to the success he has, as well as his cold heart. Will he finally let go and love? A 69xOC. Updates every friday.
1. The Charcoal Rose 1

Shadows Upon The Soul

Disclaimer: This is merely a story based on KHR, and not from the actual KHR…

Claimer: I did write this story…

Descriptions about this fanfic:

**Main Characters:**

OC: Yumi OC: Reika Mukuro

**Minor Characters:**

Chikusa Ken

I will try to update every Friday, plus or minus one day

Please enjoy, and feel free to comment and leave me ideas on how to continue!

Chapter 1: The Charcoal Rose

The boy slung his genuine leather bag loosely over his shoulder, an evil grin pasted upon his pale face. He shuffled his hands through his loose hair, and took a long deep breath. He rambled over towards the pineapple shaped mirror strung upon the wall, and saw his own cold face reflecting back. One eye of the deepest and purest blue, and the other, of the brightest red, as if burning rage within.

He turned off the mechanical beeping in the background, and slipped shadow-less upon the luminescent paths within the city. Seeing no one on the streets, he gave a small sigh of relief, and continued his way in tranquility. He was looking around his path when he spot the small snack shack. He gave a low laugh, "kufufu…" and continued towards it. However, soon he found a gray lid placed above all the items that he wanted. Of course, he could easily rip it open with his trident, but today, he was in a rather good mood. He was still staring at the food when a rather slim girl made her way to the court.

"Eto, can I get you anything?" The girl used her voice so delicate as if a little raindrop falling into a large clear pond. Mukuro smiled back.

"Yes, this, this, this, this and that." Mukuro pointed to all the pineapple-flavored sweets in the store, and the girl laughed. Like wind chimes in the wind.

"Pineapples…" The girl gracefully pulled out the few packets, clicked a few times on the calculator and smiled again, "500 yen. And, may I ask your name?"

The boy laughed as he pulled out the remains of his money within his pocket. 400, 450…and then an empty pocket.

"If I tell you my name, take off the 50."

The girl laughed again, her arm leaning on the counter and her hair flowing onto the counter evaporating a scent of rose petals. She nodded slightly and took the 450 yen happily with a great grin.

"Yumi." The girl stuck her hand out in the form of a handshake. The boy laughed his laugh and responded with, "Yoroshiku, I'm Mukuro."

Mukuro kept on pondering about that Yumi girl as he walked into the classroom without another thought. The gray walls, the dusty floor, exactly as his heart had been since he was little. After his parents had been slaughtered. But it wasn't like he cared more either. As he was looking around his territory, he saw an unsightly, no, more like unseemly girl who has tapping her feet on the cement irritated.

"Who are you?" The strong, determined voice of a female startled Mukuro. There wasn't supposed to be anyone left within the Kokuyo High School. This was Mukuro's territory, and everyone should know.

"Oya oya, who do we have here?" Mukuro laughed, "A lonely girl wanting some boy's care?"

The girl's face darkened. Her hair was tied roughly in a messy ponytail, a short skirt and a dark green jacket. The Kokuyo High School uniform. But unlike other girls that he saw wearing flats and high heels, this one was wearing leather boots, high up her leg, almost past her knees. Her eyes weren't all big, nor were they reflective, they were just strong and firm, as if daring anyone to stare at them for long. Then, she sighed as she lifted her hands out of her pocket, Mukuro saw that she was holding different sorts of rings in her hands. Red, yellow, green, blue, black, and white. Each was carved with a different object, as if some work of delicacy. The way the girl's hands was stacked on her hips, it was as if she were of more importance of Mukuro. Kufufu—how silly that would be. This girl seemed to want to battle, but Mukuro only wanted to battle the best. This girl—even Chikusa would be able to take care of her.

"If you want to fight, do as you please. Chikusa will be in anytime soon."

The girl glared at Mukuro superciliously, but then nodded. Looking around the dirty room, she sighed. The classroom before, though not of perfect discipline, was still cleaner and tidier than this. She walked over to a small platform, swept the dust with a few large movements and placed herself comfortably on it. As Mukuro had promised, she soon heard bickering boys shouting as they walked boastfully into the room.

"Mukuro-sama, ohayo gozaimasu!" They called out in unison, but the pineapple haired boy only nodded carelessly. Then, as the blond hair boy noticed the girl sitting on the platform, he pulled out his wolf teeth and prepared to place it within his mouth until Mukuro suddenly muttered, "let Chikusa take care of her. Outside."

Ken gritted his teeth unfavorably as the black haired boy beckoned the girl outside. However, he too, like Mukuro, had noticed the special presence, and more like feeling of authority over him from this girl. This girl wasn't some kasou (like Xanxus would say) that could be taken care of carelessly.

"It would be so much easier if you would just surrender and leave. That would save me some time. But since Mukuro-sama says," the man pulled out his yoyo, and swung it professionally in front of him. But the girl's presence didn't lose to Chikusa by even one bit.

She closed her eyes, felt the wind moving her hair slightly, and put one of her rings on (the red one). Immediately, Chikusa felt the heat rising, and mist was soon covering his sight. However, within moments with Chikusa's waving, the mist parted and the girl was visible again. Her clothes, which had been quite plain before, were now tattered. The heat, perhaps, even burnt her clothes. But one wouldn't notice this. Her eyes were darkened, her hair sticking fiercely behind her face (literally), and in her hands, without doubt, were two guns, on the gun in her left hand, an R was engraved in orange, while in her right hand, an S was engraved in blue upon the gun.

Chikusa didn't even have time to react when the girl fired her first bullet, it came straight for the yoyo, which had hit it accurately. Chikusa grit his teeth harder, he couldn't let some girl just beat him. He pulled out another yoyo, but the girl had already fired her bullet and it scraped his finger. Upon the pale hands, a large blob of red was visible, and the boy didn't even have time to react when the third bullet came for his leg, and he was left kneeling on the ground in agony. He couldn't lose!

He pulled out two more yoyos, and fired them at the girl, but her accuracy was extreme, and they were falling on the ground as the girl shot two more bullets. One for his right arm and the other for his right leg. Perfect. Chikusa clenched his arms in pain, and the girl switched her red ring to a white ring. Chikusa smiled as he saw the perfect time, and pulled out his yoyo, swung it fiercely, and startling enough, it cut the girl's face. The girl looked at the boy in horror, he was starting to stand up, but not fast enough. He suddenly felt the oxygen in the air leaking, and he fell back onto the ground without any air. As he managed to open his eyes, he saw the girl with a large roll of string on her arms.

"What are you...going…to do?" Chikusa managed, now starting to get up from his fixed position. But the rope grabbed onto his body, and tightened more and more. He was getting dragged to the feet of the girl, who was looking at him with pity.

"Don't look at me with that face! Do you know how strong I was to live through all that torture?" But the girl didn't say a word, and silently, dragged the boy into the classroom where the pineapple hair and blond boy stood, impressed.

"You look so pitiful, Chikusa." The blond boy immediately said, laughing, but still, walked closer to take a look at the injured boy.

"Let him go." The blond boy flashed his teeth as if he was a wild animal, and the girl kicked the boy aside without care.

"Not bad, little girl." Mukuro finally stood up from his place at the desk in the front of the old classroom.

"Don't call me that." The girl looked away from the boy who was talking, and towards the blond boy who was carrying Chikusa to another classroom. Small drips of blood formed a trail behind Chikusa's body, and the girl laughed devilishly.

"So what should I call you?" The pineapple haired boy walked closer towards the girl.

"I'm Reika." The boy laughed and continued walking closer and closer. One meter, thirty centimeters. The girl backed away in fear. She was never scared, but this boy, he had some kind of power, some presence that made even her, quiver a little. But the boy kept walking, closer and closer. Their faces only a mere five meters apart.

"Then, Reika, what do you want? In life?"

"Nothing but to be strong. Powerful. Fearless. And of course, this school."

The boy laughed. This girl was so much like someone he knew so very well. Hibari.

"Reika, would you mind to join us? And become the strongest within the world."

The girl looked up at the boy that was so confident. His eyes narrowed, and turned around, slowly walking away from her again. Perhaps…this boy could grant her wish.

"I…" The girl muttered, "Don't expect me to stick with you until the end, but for now, I accept."


	2. Angel's Trumpet 2

Shadows Upon The Soul

Disclaimer: This is merely a story based on KHR, and not from the actual KHR…

Claimer: I did write this story…

Descriptions about this fanfic:

**Main Characters:**

OC: Yumi

OC: Reika

Mukuro

**Minor Characters:**

Chikusa

Ken

Hibari

I will try to update every Friday, plus or minus one day

Please enjoy, and feel free to comment and leave me ideas on how to continue!

Warning for this chapter: pain… and quite a lot of flashbacks

Chapter 2: Angel's Trumpet

Reika had said that she wanted some time to clean up the classroom, and that she (just as Hibari) loved her own school. When she had heard about Mukuro and all his deeds within this school, she only sighed, turned away from him and went to get the mop. Why Mukuro was thinking of all this? It was perhaps because she had swept his pineapple figurine off the table, and was now scrambling across the floor blindly to find it. She was only a quarry for Mukuro, a toy, just like all others in his life were. And they were only going to be toys anyways. Sleekly, he slips through the metal door and the ethereally painted environment is exposed blandly to him. But to him, it was only dabs of colors, superficial colors that were of no use. Only the gray days, the flashing lightning and the fierce storms were of any use to humans. See, if there were no rain, there would be no food, no water. Humans would die…not him. But again, see, if there were no lightning that would help those hermits see that there's an outside world, they'd be stuck in a black house all the time.

That's why humans are so fragile. So easy to just be erased from the Earth, and no one realizes it. Mukuro closed his eyes and continued making his way down the street. Anyone who saw him would dodge him, surely. He was known as the "Big Bad Wolf" here. He began humming a little tune, and before he realizes it, small droplets form within the rims of his eyes. But what was this song? The Nanimori School Anthem. An image of a yellow bird, flying across the sky full of rainbows appears in his mind.

-flashback-

_Hibari. Hibari. _

"_Never come see me again, you herbivore!" On the hospital bed, the man was forcefully cuffed onto the bed, and some on the wall as well so that he couldn't escape. The man's face was scarred, small droplets of crimson red dabbing and polluting the perfect face of his. On the left wrist of the man, a small needle was injected and lead up to a large container that contained liquid substances. _

"_I don't want to ever see you again, Rokudo. Never come back. You're just a herbivore, what I want are carnivores!" The man shouted, but clutched onto his heart as another stroke occurred. _

"_Hibari!" Mukuro had cried out, leaning over the bed upon his body that was kicking up and down, but not allowing extra movement because of the cuffs. _

"_Leave me… alone… I hate you, Rokudo Mukuro." The man's face darkened, turning away from Mukuro. _

_That was the last Mukuro ever saw of Hibari. After two days, Ken brought back some information that the Disciplinary Committee's leader had tied from a heart attack. Reborn had brought Hibari into the hospital because of an unusual stroke that had occurred, and almost caused him to die. Apparently, Hibari had heart problems after always getting angry and worry for his school. _

-flashback ends-

"Hibari…" Mukuro muttered, his fists clenched as he opened his eyes slowly again, and unintentionally rubbed his eyes clear of the liquid. Hibari had said that he was an herbivore, that he wasn't strong enough. So he will be strong. He will be the strongest ever. He will be the one to rule over the world.

"Eto, Mukuro-san?" Again, the sound of delicate feathers slowly flowing through the air, and landing in the air with a small dip.

"Oya oya, who do we have here?" Mukuro forced a smile, and saw a girl rather sweet looking in front of him.

"You don't remember me?" The girl flashed him a smile, and for a second, even the smile that he held wasn't fake anymore. This girl had the smile the most sincere, as if ready to become a blanket that would wrap around his soul. But then as he was looking away, he saw the girl look away as if careless as well. Hmph. Mukuro had seen many girls like this before. That got near him because they heard he was strong and powerful…and that he was rich. But what they didn't know was the pain behind everything, and even if this girl could smile so much, what difference would it make? Once she hears that he's a part of the Mafia, she'd leave without another word. Ditch him. And if she stayed with him, she'd be a part of the danger that he, himself, was in as well. She'd be an easier target, and the one to get killed. She'd be a burden to his goal of being the strongest ever. But he kept up his acting skills. Fans…were always quite nice. They were an excuse that he wasn't the worse…that maybe it was Hibari that was picky.

"Kufufu, the girl in the morning right? Yumi-chan?"

"I'm so glad you remember!" The girl smiled again, and it's as if his soul enjoyed it, even if his brain knew that this girl was just a fake. But he was bored, and it was always nice to play with preys.

"Of course, I only remember the ones worth remembering, Yumi-chan~"

"Wow, um, that really makes me happy…" Just as a cold breeze past Mukuro, he saw the girl's hair flow naturally and of course, beautifully across her face. She closed her eyes, and a faint blush appeared on her face and she brushed her hair behind her ears and blinked her eyes a few times getting used to the light. "here, please accept this as a gift, it's just some of the pineapple flavored bentous I made…" The girl bowed down and held towards him a box wrapped delicately in cloth accessoried with pineapples. Sure, he has many fans, and by many, it means like, 7 or 8 thousand just within this one city, out of the ten thousand people, but never had he ever seen someone this…fanatic?

Even this fake girl, might let him feel relish. He reached out a hand coolly, and took over the case. The girl smiled broadly, and stood up again, with her arms behind her back shyly.

"I got to go now, my grandma will be expecting me." With those words, the girl ran off down the streets with delicate footsteps.

With a burdened mind, Mukuro makes his way down the alley, and into the gray street in which his house was located. On the sides of the street, children cry for candy, Mothers cuddle them, coo them, care for them. Superficial. Superficial. This was all so superficial! No person would ever care for anyone that much. Who would care for another person that cries their heart out? No one. No one. No one at all.

Sticking his hands into his pocket, he pulls out a chain, and on it is a very old fashioned set of keys. He sweeps his hands upon the jagged edge of the keys, then, as if tearing his heart away, pulls into the lock to open it.

The only thing his parents ever gave him, a key. So that he wouldn't interrupt their experimenting when he returned. He still remembered the first time that he went into an experiment room, and…the last time.

-flashback -

"_Mukuro-kun, come here, Ogaasan and Odousan have a present for you!" _

_The five year old boy grinned as he laughed normally like any boy, hahaha, and into the cradles of his parents. They were exceptionally warm, and ever since he was born, it was always maids taking care of him. Ogaasan had taken his hand and led him into the white room that was always forbidden for him. Queer machines were placed around the entire room, machines that went __**beep**__, and others that had lines crossing and wriggling across them. _

"_Ogaasan…?" The little boy asked, a heart of fear. _

"_Come on, sit on here, son. It might hurt a little bit, but after that, you get lots of presents!" Odousan gave a little push on Mukuro's back, and he fell onto the machine that was in front of him. Black ropes were tied on him and the machine, and no matter how much he wriggled, he couldn't get out of that machine. _

"_Ogaasaa, Odousan, it hurts!" The string became tighter and tighter, until the little boy's skin became purple, and his consciousness began to quaver. _

"_If you're our son, you'll live through this. You can do it, right?" Ogaasan muttered, walking over with a syringe, a caring expression placed on her face. If ogaasan said so…then it must be for his good. _

"_Hai!" Mukuro fought with his consciousness, trying to keep it straight, but finally, it stopped getting tighter, and Mukuro gave a long deep breath. Suddenly, a long pain had shot into his body, and his body shook upwards.  
_

"_AGHHH!" The little boy had shouted out, trying to search for ogaasan and odousan within his range of sight, but he couldn't see anyone. Everything was blurring. Beeps and twinkles and chimes went off in his ears, and he squeezed his eyes shut to keep everything out. Ogaasan…. And everything went black. _

"_Fight or live?" A voice had carried out, unknown voice and person, but it was the only thing within the reign of blackness. _

"_Fight…" Mukuro's small voice barely made it out, and yet it still hurt to talk. _

"_What if you may loose your own volition? Your happiness?" _

_Mukuro hesitated. Happiness, volition? First of all, that big word, volition, he did not understand. So possibly, it wasn't one that was significantly important. And second of all, his happiness came from his parents. _

"_Will my parents be happy?" Mukuro asked bravely. _

"_Parents… ah, I see. Yes they will be, very much. But you, no matter how many times you rebirth, you will always have the same body, the same mind, and never know what is happiness." _

"_Then yes… I'll fight." The little boy had a determined face on his mind, as the voice echoed out with a low hiss. _

"_He made it through. He actually made it through!" Mukuro heard ogaasan's excited voice and attempted to break through the blackness, but he didn't have any power to open his eyes or move his muscles. _

"_This will make us famous, within weeks! We could bring him to that family, that famiglia…" _

_Family? Famiglia? Bring him to where? _

_Mukuro managed to open a crack through his eyelids, to see the room with the beeping machines again, and his parents in lab coats. _

"_Ogaasan…odousan…" Mukuro smiled, and laughed, but what only came out was, "kufufufu…" _

"_That laugh! Unique, unique for a terminal assassin. But he should have a weapon, one that fits his name and laugh." _

"_Here. This one." Mukuro was handed a trident with sharp tips. As soon as he felt it, he felt something going within his body, and it was almost immediately that he knew this trident was meant for him, or that he was meant for this trident. In either case, they were meant for each other. Without another word, the black strings were loosened, and odousan grabbed Mukuro up, careful to keep the trident out of his way. Ogaasan started up the car, and within moments, they were whirling down the street to another small alley. _

"_Sit here." His parents ordered as they went in the building, then they pulled him in and went out of the door. He peeked across the wall to see where they were going, but as they were preparing to enter the car, two bullets fired, and they were both paralyzed on the ground, lifeless. _

"_Ogaasan! Odousan!" Mukuro had cried out, preparing to run out of the building, but stronger people pulled him back. _

-flashback ends-

The only other person that had understood Mukuro…was Hibari. He was always alone too. But he left Mukuro, just as all his other companions had.

He entered the dark house of his, the one where his parents had done the experiment on him, and fell upon the couch. Remembering the pineapple bentou, he laughed and opened the top. Inside, was sushi in the shape of pineapples. The yellow part as eggs, the small white portions as rice, and the green at the top vegetables.

Written neatly on top of the case were the small words, "I hope you enjoy this. – Yumi"

Right.

There was still pineapples. His diet on pineapples helped him forget about all his woes. Just eat and eat, just think of the sharp pineapples and the people still enjoy them. Pineapples.

Perhaps, this Yumi, this Yumi was really something.


	3. The Orange Daisy 3

Shadows Upon The Soul

Disclaimer: This is merely a story based on KHR, and not from the actual KHR…

Claimer: I did write this story…

I will try to update every Friday, plus or minus one day

Please enjoy, and feel free to comment and leave me ideas on how to continue!

Chapter Three: The Orange Daisy

Mukuro carefully placed the cap of the bentou back on, a satisfied and sadistic grin visible upon his moonstone features. Just as he was planning to reminisce the taste of the pineapples and the pleasing appearance of it, the doorbell rang, and the tune in which the yellow bird was featured reappeared in his mind. His face lost it's original smile, but the person was very persistent about clicking the doorbell as to the song never made it past four beats before it was pressed again.

Had the person never heard of manners?

Preparing to take care of his prey, Mukuro got up from his comfortable position on the couch.

"Hai?" Mukuro muttered, preparing his charming smile await, but the girl that appeared startled Mukuro.

"Mukuro…san?" The girl seemed much more fragile that she had been during the day. Her face was a light pink, her hands covered in dirt, and her clothing tattered. Any follower of him had to be of the best appearance!

"Reika-chan?" Before the girl had a chance to reply, her mouth opened in a slight gasp as she fell off her balance, and into the embrace of the boy. Mukuro snickered, and pulled the girl up into a princess hug, closing, and locking the door behind him.

The last time the house had welcomed a female was his mother, but of course, for her to return was merely impossible. But seeing this apprentice is getting hurt, especially such a strong apprentice, he had to do something to help her. He cleared the couch with a sweep of his hand, and carefully laid the girl upon the satin couch.

He lit a small living room light, dim and flickering, and went into his room to find a thermometer and a blanket. The blanket, of course, he just grabbed one of the pineapple designs that were stacked on his king-size bed, and went to the search of the thermometer.

When he used to have the fever, his parents would just tell him, "be a strong boy, or else you're not ours." He fought it every time, and despite all the pain, he never doubted his parents' words. Thermometer… searching from room to room, he saw none. Would he have to make an illusion for this? Mukuro grunted as he finally reached the last room in the hall. The white room.

Even though his parents weren't here anymore, he still had a quiver in his heart, as if there were racks holding his heart up, and now they were breaking and collapsing. Closing one eye, of course, the blue eye, and protectively, walks into the room. The machines still beeped, the bed that he had laid upon was still covered with his own blood, and the last result that was inputted into the computer, "experiment: successful". He laughed, mockingly towards himself, so he was just an experiment…after all those years of adoring them. He spots the white object sticking out from a container on the side, grabs it, and hurries out of the room again.

"Reika?" Mukuro asked, placing a hand on her forehead, sweeping her side bangs up.

"Mm…mine…my pineapple…" The girl twisted on the couch, nearly falling off, and it was Mukuro's hand that pushed her back up. Pineapples? Kufufu, this girl had the same interests as him. Rare.

Seeing her mouth leave another little opening, he sticks the stick into her mouth, and presses the button, waiting for the result.

"You forgot to peel…" She murmured, nearly choking on the stick.

Seeing the arrogant like this, she seemed so fragile, delicate, as if even a stick would be able to hurt her. But Mukuro had never liked those kinds of girls. They were only tools for him to climb to the top, and if they weren't functioning well, they were useless, and had to be disposed of. But the strong ones—they were another story.

*Beep*

Mukuro took out the stick and in shock, dropped the thermometer on the ground.

40.7 degrees Celsius

10 hours later, with Mukuro fast asleep beside the couch, Reika woke up with a dizzy head, ten layers of pineapple blankets, and a towel and bucket beside the couch.

"Mukuro-san?" The girl poked the boy in the ribs, and he opened one of his eyes lazily, then seeing the girl awake, turned away in shock.

"Turn around. I need to fix my hair."

Reika: hai…

As the two people finished dressing their hair, Mukuro exited the living room to his own room, in which he changed and threw out some lavish clothes for Reika.

Reika: A DRESS?

Mukuro: It's the only kind of women clothing I have here.

Reika: Do you have shorts and t-shirts?

Mukuro: Yes, but they're for men.

Reika: I don't care…give them to me.

Mukuro: Kufufu *searches through closet*, here you go.

Reika grinned as she saw clothing that finally fitted her interest. Dresses were not compatible with sports and exercises. And plus, she didn't wear skirts and dresses ever since she was young. As the two people finished dressing, they met again at the door.

"Why did you come to my house?" Mukuro suddenly remembered that she was the one who appeared at his door. She could've gone directly to a hospital if what she wanted was treatment.

"I need a place to stay. So I came here. "

"No."

"Please."

"Go to a hotel."

"I don't have money."

"You don't have anything…" Mukuro glanced at the girl who was now dressed in his own clothes, obviously oversized, yet she was still happy with it.

"I have you, shisho."

With that, Mukuro was left speechless. Ken and Chikusa had never asked anything from him, but to save those two, he would go to jail himself. If he could go to jail for two of his apprentices, to let an apprentice reside at his house didn't seem over.

"Everything—you must listen to me."

The girl nodded, and prepared to exit when the boy ordered her to stop.

"Where's breakfast?"

"I just woke up as well, how should I know?"

"Hmph." The boy grunted as his stomach lurched again. The girl should be hungry too, and there was a snack shack around anyways.

As they arrived at the snack shack, Mukuro could already spot the girl reading within the shades of the roof top.

"You go first, Reika." Mukuro muttered, and the girl shrugged it off and walked off casually. As she walked, she heard some distant laughs, turned around, and saw Mukuro and the snack shack girl laughing joyfully. Che. But weirdly, there was a tingling, and another pulse that made her feel like she hated the girl there. She slipped through the door to see the two other apprentices quarreling, and they paused at her presence.

"I challenge you to a fight, Reika!" The blond boy pulled out his teeth, but the girl did nothing.

"Don't want to, I'm hungry." The girl walked past Ken and lay down on the couch at the side of the room, clearly not in a good mood.

"Are you belittling me? I am strong, you know!" Ken growled, flashing his claws at the girl. But the girl only turned away.

"I'm not belittling you, I said I didn't want to battle." The girl scratched her head as if annoyed. This did it. Ken howled and dashed into the girl, expecting to slash her, but she was already walking out of the door. Chikusa, watching the show, chuckled, which earned a fresh scratch on his arm.

But seeing Ken attempting so hard and getting no result, Chikusa joined the battle.

"I don't need you to help me." Ken muttered, but didn't push Chikusa away. Ken placed his fangs on as Chikusa pulled out his yoyo.

Reika only sighed and put on the green ring. The trees swayed back and forth, nearly knocking of the two competitors. They grit their teeth harder as they attack at the same time, one from the left and one from the right. Reika sees through their ruse, and uses the branches of the trees to grip on their feet. But she forgot the most important thing. Chikusa attacked from his hands, in which the yoyo was already swung, and made a deep wound on her shoulder. Seeing the girl loosen her focus, the branches began loosening as well, and Ken started running towards the girl, his mouth opened wide.

Just as he was about to bite down, a lily emerged from the ground and pulled Ken into space. Chikusa, remembering whom the lily belonged to, backed away from the girl, and bowed in respect.

"Mukuro-san!" Ken shouted, struggling against the lily, but the man didn't notice.

"Reika, are you alright?"

The girl grunted and stared away, but the man persisted in looking at the wound. It was nearly three centimeters thick, and red fluid was already flowing wildly from it.

"Oya oya, my little girl's wounded."

But even Reika had some pride within her. "Leave me alone, this is… a disgrace."

The man didn't respect, and pulled the girl up into his arms. The blood was already staining his hands, and some even started dripping onto his shirt.

"Be quiet, and let your Master take care of this." The man with a pineapple head carefully placed the girl on the couch and went to fetch some wet towels.

"Mukuro…" Reika muttered as the man returned with a wide grin. He first bent down near Reika's wound, and stuck out his tongue, licking the blood off of her arm and spiting it out in a bucket nearby. As Mukuro's hot saliva began making way for the wound to appear, he saw a huge rip in her tissues, he looked pitifully at the girl with clenched fists, and a twisted face from holding against the agony.

"Are you alright?" Mukuro asked, even if she were only prey, he wanted the best prey, and, prey that had no agony.

"Hai." The girl recovered slightly, and flashed Mukuro a smile. How determined and strong this girl was, she was the best prey, Mukuro decided.

As Mukuro finished bandaging the wound, he found that the girl was already happily in dreamland, with little snores coming out of her nose. Chuckling, he picked her up again and began on his way to the house.

He didn't meet Yumi, and didn't think of her either. So who is Mukuro's special her?


	4. The Impaled Dandelion 4

Disclaimer: This is merely a story based on KHR, and not from the actual KHR…

Claimer: I did write this story…

I will try to update every Friday, plus or minus one day

Please enjoy, and feel free to comment and leave me ideas on how to continue!

Chapter 4 – The Impaled Dandelion

6 a.m.

"Excuse me? Mukuro-san?" The recognizable call of Yumi echoed into Mukuro's ears, who had been deep in his dreamland.

Grunting, and seeing Reika still snoring away while murmuring, "pineapple…", he chuckled and walked to the door in his pineapple pajamas, of course, not forgetting to take a look at his hairstyle. Perfect.

"Da-re?" Mukuro asked, leaning on the door slightly while adjusting his clothes to look slightly more visually appealing, not like he'd care about what a prey thinks, but it's always pleasing to look dazzling.

"I'm Yumi, I don't know if you still remember…"

Right, Yumi. The girl that always made him laugh. But in his heart, he also knew that she was a dangerous prey.

If he went too close with her, he'd be prey for a normal girl! A normal girl! Unacceptable, but it wasn't like he could control the quivering in his heart whenever she appeared.

"What do you want, Yumi-chan?" Mukuro smiled, closing his red eye.

"It's not really anything, it's just you left this small pendant at the shack yesterday, and I thought it was important to you…so I brought it."

"This…"

"I'm really sorry I interrupted your sleep. I…I should go." Yumi smiled sweetly, as if cherry blossoms would immediately appear beside her, and her confident, yet tender figure made Mukuro want to squeeze even more. But this girl was dangerous! This would be the weak spot in his career, in his life, and a weak spot like that was unacceptable.

"Thank you." Speechless, Mukuro could only murmur such, and hold the light blue pendant in his hand. He had always kept this in his pocket ever since he was young, and even when he was showering, he would put it on the stand beside him so he wouldn't lose it. This time he lost it, and this girl brought it back for him.

_-flashback starts—Mukuro: 4 years old—_

"_Mukuro, put that down." Ogaasan said, slapping his hand, tugged on him by the cuff of his shirt and threw him on the bed in the other room. _

"_Gaasan?" The little Mukuro flashed his eyes innocently at the woman. _

"_We have a guest, you're not to get out of this room, you're not to play with anything, you're not allowed to scream, shout or cry until I tell you to. Or else…"_

"_Sakura!" _

"_Hai!" The familiar yet secluded woman glared at the young boy, "Remember, Mukuro, or else…" With a snap, the door closed. _

_He sighed, but then smiled to cheer himself up. So what if gaasan was a bit rough? It was to make him stronger. That had to be it. When it seemed like hours past, finally, a creak of light appeared from the door. _

"_Gaasan?" Mukuro lit up, grinned and stumbled to the door, but an unfamiliar man stood there. He had the most caring expression, his arms wide as if wanting Mukuro to let him cuddle. The little boy laughed happily, and into the man's cuddle. _

"_It's rough here, being special, yeah?" _

"_As long as gaasan and dousan are here, everything's fine!" Mukuro exclaimed, throwing an arm into the air, and the man chuckled, shoving his hand into his pocket, and reaching out a blue pendant that looked like a pineapple. _

"_You're a strong little boy~" _

"_I'm a man!"_

"_Haha, indeed, you're a strong man, but have you ever felt sad?"_

"_Sad?"_

"_When you have transparent liquid come out of your eyes, or you really want to scream and shout."_

"_Yes…, when gaasan and dousan don't talk to me and don't play with me!"_

"_Souka, all about your gaasan and dousan. Here, whenever you feel sad, just clench this pendant, and shine it into daylight or moonlight. It will suck all your pain away." _

"_Hai!" _

"_And remember, don't ever let it go." _

"_Hai!"_

_-flashback ends—_

"Dousan…gaasan…who was that mysterious man?" Mukuro mutters, then smiles to himself. At least the pendant isn't gone, it's safe in his hand, and he won't ever let it go again. Yumi. Yumi. The Night. Such a dark name, yet she's everything but dark. She's always so joyful, sometimes timid.

"Naa, bad luck man, what are you saying?" Reika seems to have woken up, stretching lazily on the kitchen counter, and flashed him a large grin.

"Nothing." He muttered, but then realized one other thing, " bad luck man?"

"Hai. See? Because of you, my dear school and friends got slaughtered, and you made my school horribly dirty, you know. Also, you made Chikusa and Ken hate me!"

"And yet you're still here."

"I don't know why."

"Che, you don't make any sense."

"I guess I trust you, in some twisted way."

"You could have left it at I trust you, but then again, you're the war-seeker."

"War-seeker?"

"It seems almost everytime I see you, you're in a battle."

"It's not like I want a battle. It's more like battles find me."

"Right, if you say so. Well, I got to go, you train with Ken today outside the school."

"Where are you going?"

"Battle."

Without another word, the pineapple haired man left the room, leaving Reika with tranquility.

-m

Mukuro fought with all his might with this man, but he kept on using his hands and pathetic facial expressions to freeze him.

"Get stronger!" The man muttered, giving him another blast of fire. Mukuro used his illusions to fight it off, but it was slowly eating through the shield.

"You're not bad, kufufu…" The shield finally wore off, and Mukuro was sent blasted off into the cement wall, small drips of blood trailing down his mouth.

"Mukuro-san, I'm sorry, but this is Reborn's orders. To battle you to make you stronger."

"So he thinks I'm not strong enough?" Mukuro, using the last power of his body, made a lily illusion that started suffocating the man, but easily, with the flames, the man blasted open Mukuro's last illusion, and he was left paralyzed on the ground.

"Mukuro-san, I'm sorry. I think I should go now." The man muttered, then started getting out of the room.

"Sawada, you're getting stronger…" Mukuro lost his will and fell into a world of blackness.

-r

"Let me continue battling you!" The blond hair boy put on his ape teeth as he gained more energy and started to stand up again, but the girl's oxygen-depriving skill of her white ring only sucked away that last bit of energy he had.

"I think I'm done here. You've gotten stronger, fang guy." The girl laughed as she swung her converse bag on her shoulder and began walking casually across the streets when she smelled that distinctive smell of blood. Human blood.

Was someone slaughtering around here?

She sighed as she continued following the scent. She had always had a great sense of smell, since her life depended upon it when she was young.

-flashback starts—

"_Where are you guys? Mom? Dad?" The little girl shivered as a huge breeze came through the trees. This was just like Hansel and Gretel, she didn't want to get abandoned! This couldn't be it, they probably got tired and stopped by some tree while she didn't notice and continued walking, not noticing them. Yes, that had to be it. _

_One hour. _

_Two hours. _

_The only sight in front of her had only been trees, trees, and more trees. Seldom once or twice had she seen some dandelions upon the grassland, but they were never the same ones. She wasn't walking in a circle, but why couldn't she get out of this? _

"_I see why my experiment didn't work. A little girl got in the way." An old man appeared out of the trees nearby, as if opening the wall of the forest. _

"_Who are you?" _

"_Why should I answer? You're the intruder of my experiment. What are you doing here?"_

"_I don't know. My parents and I were hiking, and then they disappeared. I can't find them, and I'm lost."_

"_Didn't your parents tell you not to talk to strangers?"_

"_I'm sorry, but it's too late for that."_

"_If you can pass a few simple tests, I'll let you stay with me, and maybe you'll find where your parents are." _

_Reika had passed those tests easily, then worriedly glanced at the old man, who just chuckled. _

"_Alright, I promised. But if what you hear isn't what you want, stay here and learn from me." _

"_Okay." _

_The old man opened a monitor, in which everything was audible and visible. _

"_We finally got rid of that burden!" Her mother laughed, holding hands with her father. _

"_I know. Why did you even bother adopting her?"_

"_She looked nice. But it turns out I was wrong. She's a horror."_

_At that same time, the mountain nearby had began shaking, small stones falling off the cliffs. _

"_Hm?" The old man muttered, staring curiously at the screen. _

"_Careful!" Reika's father had yelled out, pushing her mother forwards, but only made her tumble on the ground as more stones started falling down, faster and faster. _

_The screen suddenly went dark. _

"_It's enough for you to see." The old man turned around with a grave look. But Reika couldn't even see clearly through her watered eyes, but quickly, she swiped it clean and smiled brightly. _

"_If they don't want me, then I'll stay out of their life." She grinned, but inside, her heart was throbbing with concern, lament, and curiosity to see how her parents were. _

_-flashback ends—_

She turned around the street to see almost microscopic drops of blood on the cement. As families were laughing and stepping upon it, none noticed but her. She narrowed her eyes as she followed the track.

"—stronger" the familiar voice that she heard for weeks. Mukuro. Was there anyone else there? But no voice responded, so she walked into the empty parking lot.

"Mukuro?" The man was paralyzed on the ground, his eyes closed.

"Mukuro? Wake up!" The girl threw her arms on his shoulders, beginning to shake and rock him hardly. She narrowed her eyes even more, then slapped his face as hard as she could, so that there was only a large pink hand mark on his face.

The man lifted one eye slightly, seeing the blurry figure of a girl, could only laugh out, "kufufu…I'm fine…bring me home." Then once again, this time, truly without any energy left, fell into sleep once again.

"Mukuro? Mukuro?" The girl threw her hands on the chest of the man, then began punching it hard, but again, there was no reaction.

She turned backwards, pulling the arms of the man on her shoulder, and stood up slowly.

Even though he was so strong, even though he looked so big, he wasn't that heavy. Humping her back so that Mukuro, if he could feel anything being passed out, would feel more comfortable.

Finally arriving inside the house, Reika slowly placed the man on his bed with all the pineapple accessories. First, massaging her back, then seeing all the accessories that she had wanted for years, smiled, and hugged each pineapple.

"Pineapple, pineapple, pineapples!" Then she turned to the man that was surrounded by pineapples, then muttered, "you pineapple fairy bad luck man." But almost without a reason, smiled at him, and leaned down to hug him. And—from tire, fell fast asleep.


	5. The Lily Needle 5

Chapter 5

The Lily Needle

Disclaimer: This is merely a story based on KHR, and not from the actual KHR…

Claimer: I did write this story…

Descriptions about this fanfic:

**Main Characters:**

OC: Yumi

OC: Reika

Mukuro

**Minor Characters:**

Chikusa

Ken

I will try to update every Friday, plus or minus one day

Please enjoy, and feel free to comment and leave me ideas on how to continue!

"Oya oya, my attraction even bringing in the all mighty Reika?"

"…"

"Kufufu, you're not awake yet." The pineapple man slipped out of the silk covers, strode towards the long mirror upon the wall, and stared at the girl that was on the bed.

"Tell me about you, Pineapple fairy bad luck man."

"! Pineapple fairy?"

"You look like a pineapple fairy."

"… right."

"Pineapple fairy bad luck man, don't use that sarcastic tone on me!"

"Why? You're only my prey."

"Eh? Why are you so confident and arrogant? You could just as well be my prey."

"kufufu…let's see you try."

"Anyways…tell me about you."

"What…about me?"

No one had ever paid attention to Mukuro's past, not even the famiglia that had adopted Mukuro for experiments. No one.

"Everything. Your past."

So Mukuro told her everything.

From when he was a toddler and was always secluded and experimented on by his parents. When he was in the famiglia. How he escaped with Ken and Chikusa. How he got caught back into the prison. How he had gotten caught jail breaking, just to let his companions survive. How in the future, Tsuna and the Vongola family saved him. How embarrassing it was for him, the Mukuro Rokudo to need a trainer—Tsuna.

The girl didn't say a word during any of this, Mukuro turned to her to see if she had been listening, but indeed, she was. By the rim of her eyes, some droplets of salt water were dropping onto her lace material sleeping gown. Neither man nor woman remembered that they had slept on the same bed throughout the night.

"Gomene." Reika muttered, pushing the bed cover to the side and hopping of the bed. She bowed down slightly, her sleeping gown revealing a bit more of her skin. Mukuro only smiled silently as he continued adjusting his hair.

"Eto, this may be a bit daring, but from now on….please call me Rei." The girl kept on walking towards the boy, her tears never stopping, as if all the H2O in her body would leak out through her eyes.

"…Rei…kufufu." The boy murmured, but the girl heard nothing.

Why was this boy so strong? How could he have lived through…all this? Something tens, hundreds times worse than her own story, and she had been drowning within her own life. For the first time in her life, she felt like she knew what her powers could be used for—supporting, helping, protecting the boy that was in front of her. She knew that he probably wouldn't need her powers anyways, but together, they'd fight against fate.

Slowly, she reached out her arms, pulling Mukuro's back closer to her. She closed her eyes, and let the pineapple scent fill her nose, fill her body, ingratiate her.

"Rei-chan?" Mukuro recovered after a few moments, and Reika immediately let go of her hands.

"Gomene. Kohohoho, I… " Timidly, the girl brought her clothes from the bed and hurried outside to the couch.

Mukuro, still startled, fell backwards on the bed. Why was this girl so womanly at times like this? Wasn't she the battle-seeker? The stupid, school-aholic, battle-seeker? She was supposed to love to battle. But slowly, as he traced his own hip, as if feeling the touch of Reika earlier, chuckled. This girl was interesting, very interesting, maybe interesting enough to become a prey that he would seek for.

"Eto, Mukuro, I'm done."

The boy walked silently out of the room with a grin that seemed so misplaced upon the misfortunate boy.

"Let's go then, Rei-chan."

"See? You already have a nickname for me," Reika murmured as she locked the door and ran to catch up to the pineapple hair, "I need a nickname for you."

"…"

"Come on! Pineapple fairy bad luck man is good, but it's a bit long. You see, if I were to call out this on the street," Reika took a deep breath, then shouted into the empty street, "PINEAPPLE FAIRY BAD LUCK MAN!"

"Kufufufufu…"

"Hm, how about Mumu?"

"Mumu…."

"Mumu-kun!" The girl broke into a set of hysterical laughs, "Kohohohoho~"

"Kufufu…"

"Kohoho…"

The two stopped laughing, and under the sunset, glanced at each other's faces.

"Rei-chan…"

"Hai!" The girl grinned, jingling the keys happily.

"Never mind."

It was then that both people reached the small shack in which Yumi was already waving gracefully at them. Reika's face darkened as she stopped in front of the shack with "Mumu-kun" beside her.

"You want to talk to her?"

"Sure. You go first, and don't get into a fight while I stop here for a while." The sweet smile again.

Why didn't Mukuro ever give _her _the sweet, the special smile?

Did she mean…really that little to him? Slowly, with all the depressing thoughts eating away at her, Reika continued down the path.

-m's pov

"Mukuro-san, ohayo!" The girl with the long brown hair smiled sweetly, and pulled out a few pineapple flavored bread from the counter.

"Yumi?" Mukuro hesitated, suddenly remembering the danger that this girl was to him, his career, and his life.

"It's okay, I'll pay these for you." She pushed the bread out even more, "are you okay?"

As if suddenly waking up from a daydream, Mukuro laughed and took the pieces of bread.

"Yes."

"Um, if it's okay, I want to ask you something…" A light blush brushed past the girl's tender skin, and her iris that was so clear anyways became more like diamonds now.

"Oya, okay."

"Mm…I…I like you…and if it's okay, could you please try to go out with me? As a couple?"

"You should know, you're just my prey."

"Hai… well, tomorrow, at Central Park, the first wooden bench, 3 PM….I'll wait for you there."

"I might not come."

"I know."

"Kufufu, if you say so. Jaa mata."

The boy turned away from the girl, a sudden badump badump began in his heart. No, no, she was just prey, the most dangerous prey that he had picked. But she said…that she'd be waiting.

- after training, back at the house -

Reika had called the Kentucky Fried Pineapples, or KFP, one of the famous fast food restaurants here. Oddly, the boy wasn't scrawled on the couch or the carpet in the living room, boasting to her. He just sat in his study room, not really writing anything, listening to anything, reading anything…or doing anything else but thinking.

"KFP here!"

Throwing her thoughts aside, Reika opened a creak in the door, stuffed out the money and received the warm bag of food, that, of course was full of the intoxicating aroma of pineapples.

She knocked on the door three times, as she had been instructed to, but never been obedient enough to follow before. No sound came out, but she took that as the silent "ok" and entered the room, with plates of pineapple dishes.

"Mumu-kun?" Reika felt rocks smashing her heart as the boy looked at her with eyes with no energy.

"Rei..chan." The boy managed a smile, but how fake it was, even the naïve side of Reika understood.

"Here's the food, but I'm not giving it to you."

A little bit more energy in his eyes.

"Ha?"

"I'm. Not. Giving. You. The. Pineapples."

A sudden burst of energy filled his eyes, whether it was fury or just plain energy, Reika couldn't tell.

"You're just my prey, and you're saying that. Oya. More bravery in you!"

"Is that good—or bad?"

"…" " Kufufu… for your interest, it will be good."

Reika laughed as Mukuro finally got his energy back, and handed him the warm meal with two hands.

"Eat together?"

"Oya oya, you're getting brave now." But other than that, the two ate in silence.

"Ah! So good." Reika slammed the box of food down on the table, burping simultaneously.

"Kufufu, you should at least pretend to be like a girl."

"Do you only like girly girls?"

"Not…necessarily."

"I'm going to sleep now…I like your bed." With a sheepish wink, she ran out of the room, and soon, Mukuro heard a flop on the bed, unintentionally chuckling to himself.

But tomorrow. Would he go—or not? But then he wasn't that kind of person to let his prey be on her own—because his prey meant that they belonged to him. What would he do?


	6. The Chrysanthemum Burst 6

Chapter 6

Chrysanthemum Burst

Disclaimer: This is merely a story based on KHR, and not from the actual KHR…

Claimer: I did write this story…

Descriptions about this fanfic:

**Main Characters:**

OC: Yumi

OC: Reika

Mukuro

**Minor Characters:**

Chikusa

Ken

I will try to update every Friday, plus or minus one day

Please enjoy, and feel free to comment and leave me ideas on how to continue!

[2:55]

"Where are you going?" Reika looked up lazily from the couch to see the boy dressed formally and preparing to exit the house. If he were going to a battle, he'd wear more casual clothes, if he were going to training, he'd bring Reika along. There was something fishy here.

"To see someone." And with that, the door closed with a quiet slam.

To see someone? An unknown pain started grabbing at her heart, and something that she had never experienced popped up. Fear. But what did she fear? Not even she, herself, knew. She sighed and continued staring at the TV. Screen, but couldn't focus. She'd always find herself thinking about that boy again. Mukuro-san.

Would he have a good time—without her? Is he seeing a male or female?

"Arrrgh" Reika threw the pillows on the ground furiously, the rebound of the pillow almost hitting her again. "Stupid boy…" she muttered as she went to change for more pretty clothing, and exited the house immediately. Where she was going to? She sighed, she didn't know either.

But then she thought of the one place that could make her peaceful and calm. The Central Park. It was one of the one place that she could stay without fearing of being hyper fear of getting hurt, any fear at all. She could glance at the small ducks and pigeons crossing her view, she could close her eyes and just feel the small wind breezes cross and sweep all her worries away.

She quickly bought her ticket and began her walk through the park, her hair getting swayed back and forth. She continued down her journey, her feelings and emotions getting better and better, more and more peaceful.

"Mukuro-san!" She suddenly heard the familiar name get shout out, and her emotions that had just been placated burst out once again. Was this girl the person that he was seeing? Seeing nowhere to hide in her location now, she leapt behind a tree and peeked out as if she were just eight and playing a game of hide and seek.

The pineapple hair boy walked into the scene casually with a smile on his face. They began talking, but the wind only covered their voices even more. But Reika didn't give me, she narrowed her eyes and continued staring.

[3:04]

The girl leaned him to give Mukuro a hug. 'He'll reject it. He'll reject it.' Reika could only keep on repeating that to herself. But he didn't. His long arms wrapped around the girl softly, and his mouth began moving again as if coxing her.

Stupid Mukuro. Idiotic Mukuro. Horrible Mukuro!

With what seemed like tears in her eyes, she began shouting, "Mukuro! You stupid Mukuro! You baka! You horrible pineapple fairy!"

She didn't care about the people staring at her as if she were crazy. She couldn't. There were just too many emotions flowing up, too many emotions stopping her from thinking correctly. Outside of the park, she heard what seemed like her name.

"Rei-chan!"

She turned around slowly, not knowing what to expect. That voice was too familiar.

"…"

"Rei-chan, what happened?"

"You stupid bad luck man!" With that, she sniveled and ran out even faster than before. For some reason, she wanted to hear Mukuro shout her name again.

[4:37]

Reika had a pineapple pillow, and was cuddling herself on the couch while the TV kept on mumbling irrelevant and trifling events. With a click, the door opened and the pineapple fairy was there, his face all stern and a bag in his hand.

"For you." He threw the bag on the couch, but didn't move from his position as if expecting something in return from Reika.

"Who cares anymore? You have your dear snack-shack girl! Stop caring for me and leave, me, alone!" Reika turned away from the boy hastily and continued staring at the blank TV screen.

"What does this have anything to do with Yumi? This is about you, acting all weirdly for no reason at all."

"Me? Acting all weirdly?" Reika forced a laugh, "I saw you two, all hugging and you coddling her."

"She's just prey. You should know that, and if you didn't, you don't know me well enough. It was a hug of friendship and rejection. Damn, I thought you were different!" With a grunt, he left the living room as well.

Only…prey? Hug of friendship…? Was it really that simple? Did Reika misinterpret all of it?

Instantly, she felt a big lump forming in her throat, and tears, for unknown reasons, whether of lament or joy, she couldn't tell either. But then she remembered the plastic bag beside her on the couch.

"Gomene…" she muttered as she opened the bag. A pineapple pillow, and sewn on it were the words, "For Rei-chan."

She began sobbing, her shoulders rising and lowering uncontrollably, with small sniffles and snivels.

The man stepped out of the room, a pitiful face for Reika. Perhaps she really misunderstood, and he could never stand women crying. He walked over, sat down right beside her, and placed her head in his chest, wrapping his arms around her.

She was so fragile, so tender, it made the strong Mukuro want to protect this girl. She wasn't like any prey, she was the prey that he wanted.

And together, they hugged until midnight, one sobbing, one smiling.


	7. The Torn Sakura 7

Chapter 7

**The Torn Sakura**

"Mumu-kun?" Rei woke up in the middle of the night to the splashing of water in the bathroom.

"Are you okay?" Rei asked once again as Mukuro exited the room with droplets of water still dropping from his saturated hair. Rei quickly followed behind, grabbing his wrist, and facing his bony back. Small sweat circles were barely visible; yet enough proof that Mukuro hadn't been sleeping well.

"What's wrong?" Rei probed, using her other hand to poke Mukuro's back playfully, but the man stood still for a while, then, finally, turned around with an obvious fake grin.

"Nothing, Rei-chan. Maybe just hungry. My stomach's flipping."

"…"

"And tugs at my heart, kufufu, I'm so weird." Mukuro looked away from Rei's eyes, shook off her wrist, and walked zombie-like to the refrigerator.

"Mumu…"

"Go sleep."

"But…."

"Or else I won't share any pineapples with you."

"Fine, but, be careful, Mumu-kun."

Rei turned silently around, her curly hair swaying behind her sloppily.

_**m- **_

As Rei left, it was like Mukuro's burden decreased by a few hundred. But that tumbling and weird feeling in his heart didn't leave. With a forced laugh, he swung open the refrigerator, got a few slices of frozen pineapples, and returned to his normal spot on the couch.

He closed his eyes for better focus, but he found himself always thinking about the same issue again. Rei-chan, Yumi. Yumi.

Would it be good bringing such an innocent girl into his world full of battles?

And Rei—having something he didn't even know the name for. The urge to take care of her, and yet, sometimes that irritated feeling. And yesterday, leaving Yumi behind to call Rei, when he returned to the place earlier in the park, Yumi had already disappeared.

Gulping down the pineapples, he left out a great exclaim of satisfaction, and swung his head a few times around to get his mind clear, then, of course, not forgetting to fix his hair afterwards.

He'd deal with everything by sunrise, and he needed his "beauty" sleep. Letting his mind shut down, he closed his eyes and fell into his dream world.

_**r-**_

She slowly opened her eyes, hearing the clashing of dishes in the kitchen.

"Shizzle." She muttered as she quickly got dressed and hurried into the kitchen.

There Mukuro was, slamming pots together as if to make something called "breakfast" which consisted of shatters of metal pans, a few uncooked pieces of rice, and a porcelain plate that was on the verge of snapping open.

"Mumu-kun?"

The man turned around with a grin on his face, but his eyebrows conveyed a totally different message.

"I'll make breakfast today…" He continued smashing the pans together.

"Mumu! We'll go out to eat, that snack-shack, yeah?" Not like Reika wanted Mukuro to see Yumi again. But perhaps she may be the only one that could help Mukuro that was so deep in thought.

With a blank face, Mukuro turned around, and gave a sly grin. "Okay. Kufufu, pineapples." With that, the two left the house.

It wasn't a bright day like normal, the sun, as if suddenly shy, was hiding behind the clouds, only peeking his eye out. Small breezes carried the Sakura flowers in midair, slowly drifting past house over house, and those smiles that had been both Mukuro—and Reika's dream even since they were young. As the Sakura flowers past Reika, she grabbed a petal and slowed down her footsteps.

"You know what these are?" She smiled, pinching the flower petals closer to breaking.

"Sakura flowers…." Mukuro whispered. Sakura. Hibari. Why did all this have to come back to him?

But what could be done now?

He was gone.

Forever.

And nothing would ever bring him back. All Mukuro could do was—to forget about Hibari as he said, and find someone just as great as him. As if that would ever happen.

"Mumu-kun?" Reika glanced into Mukuro's eyes, seriously.

Mukuro closed his eyes and hummed a laugh. 'Continue walking like normal' He told himself.

"I'm sorry, Mumu-kun…" Reika sighed, opened her fingers that had been pinching onto the petal so that the juice within stained her fingers, and let the wounded petal fly back into the sky.

"We're all like that, Mumu-kun, like those petals."

"…"

"We're always flying, flying, flying around to search for a place to finally let ourselves rest and settle down. And we might get hurt, pinched so hard that it seems our souls are going to break out of our body. But what could we do? We just fly back into the wind and continue."

"Rei-chan?" Mukuro muttered, and was going to say something until he spot the small snack shack in the middle of the street.

Reika's face seemed to darken, but her smile remained.

"Don't worry about me anymore, you can go—talk to her." Reika seemed to light up, and started shoving Mukuro towards the shack.

"Oya oya. I will go on my own. Pineapple snacks…I'll get you one if you want."

"Kohoho, thank you then…and see you."

_**m- **_

Mukuro smiled as Reika walked off, and quickened his pace towards the small snack shack.

Yumi.

Yumi.

Right.

Yumi.

"Yumi?"

"Ara, who do we have here?"

An elderly woman sat in the snack shack, chewing on some gummies that seemed to be overdue. In her hands, she held a crumpled newspaper, and seemed to be reading it.

"Oya. I'm looking for Yumi."

"Who are you?"

"I'm Mukuro. Mukuro Rokudo."

The old woman sighed, and looked into Mukuro's eyes, not afraid like any normal person would be. She held her newspaper up, and quickly smashed it on Mukuro's head.

"Oi!" Mukuro muttered, rubbing his head. The old woman grinned.

"Now it's even. Yumi—she's sick. Yesterday, she waited for you in the park for four hours. But you went with that girl and never came back."

"Sick? And I did go back to check…"

"Souka?" The old lady grinned, "Then perhaps, my granddaughter got lost herself in the park."

Yumi was sick—waiting for him. And after one quick glance, he had left thinking that she didn't wait. But she did…for four hours. What had he been doing in those four hours? Buying pineapples,

trying to get Reika happy again? While he was doing all that… this girl had been outside, waiting for him.

"Where's your house?"

The old lady chuckled, and walked out of her shack.

"Follow me."

Even though this was a creepy old lady, even though she might not be able to be trusted…he had to see Yumi. He had to.

_**r-**_

Reika had walked back silently, her heart throbbing as she heard Mukuro's voice, and turned back to see him walking away from the path leading to Kokuyo High School.

Souka. He left her alone.

Reika sighed, but clenched her fists together and threw it up in the air.

"It's okay! Mukuro may like Yumi, but SO. WHAT! Without boys…my life was good too…" As if contemplating, Reika let her arm fall to the natural movement, and it swung back and forth a few times.

"What are you doing here, bya!"

"It's getting cold…" 

The blond and glasses boy appeared in front of her, their hands on their hips.

"You're looking for another fight? I'm not in the mood." Reika muttered, walking past them apathetically.

"No, Reika, we bought some pineapple bentous, let's go eat it." Chikusa lifted his glasses a little, and let it fall back onto his nose. His other hand gripped his yoyo, as if nervous, rubbed his hand back and forth against it.

"Arigato." Reika grinned as she let the two lead her back into the building, and began to eat.

"Oishi!" Reika gasped happily, intoxicated in the moment. But something was missing.

Something didn't feel right.

Mukuro wasn't there.

Author's note:

Hmm, next chapter I should be writing about Yumi's story, so readers get a better idea of Yumi. Yepp, need to start the hard work so I can finish another chapter by Friday! Thnx for everyone's support!


	8. The Ashen Euphorbia 8

Chapter 8

**The Ashen Euphorbia **

Yumi's story.

Yumi's point of view

I twist uncontrollably on the bed as a pain in my stomach lurches up again. I try to shout as soft as possible, and clench my bed covers tighter. Hearing the slow, paced chimes of the wind chime at the door, like a hymn, I close my eyes and let it wrap around me.

-flashback starts here – Yumi: 5 years old—

"_Why didn't you get first?" The tall figure that resembled my dad stood in front of me, papers scattering from his large hand onto the table. Why didn't I get first…why couldn't I ever get first? Why couldn't I ever let Daddy be happy? Slowly, droplets of tears roll down my face, as if uncontrollable, more and more flow out. Stop it… stop it…please, not again. I plead silently in my head, please not again. _

_Angry, my mom appears out of the kitchen, her spatula still in her hands. Her eyebrows curved inwards tighter, her eyes narrowed, and her hands raise up in fists._

"_Stop yelling to her!" The loud, clear voice traveled across the room within a second, and I crunch up in a small ball, tears flowing more and more._

_Stop fighting, please stop fighting. _

"_She got second!" _

"_What? You think she's an university student? Her brain hasn't developed yet!" _

"_Habits come from their parents! And I never make mistakes!" Their voices get louder and louder._

"_You think it's my fault." Mommy walked closer and closer, her tears of anger significantly different from mine. _

_Stop fighting, stop fighting, mommy, daddy. I did it wrong, I shouldn't gotten first, it's all my fault__…_

"_Who else is there?" _

_Mommy walked closer and closer, her arm suddenly raised and prepared to slam down into Daddy's face, when his strong hand pulled her tight. _

_Suddenly getting scared, Mommy stopped fighting. I lift my head up a little, Mommy starts sobbing. Her power left to resist Daddy was left with nothing. _

"_Mommy__…__"_

"_Go to your room. Now. Or else I'll get mad." Even though Mommy looks angry, her voice, her eyes transmit affection, and gentle gestures. _

_Even at the last moment, Mommy turned around with a smile. Mommy__…__ I want to help you. _

_Even though I was forced to leave, I wanted to see what happened, so I could comfort Mommy later. I pretend like I'm in my room, but leave a big crack so I could see—and hear everything. With the living room light shining into my room, my vision weakens a little, but I try to keep it wide. _

_A slap that could be heard throughout the house. Mommy's on the ground, small droplets of blood stains on her mouth, her eyes still wide from shock. Mommy…please be okay… I storm out of my room, scared, terrified, and more worried for Mommy. But her eyes held a kind of determination that could be seen evidently. _

"_Let's__…__" She held a hand to her mouth to wipe off the small streaks of blood that could be seen, and muttered, "divorce." _

-flashback ends—

The pain of that memory had never stopped—how foolish of me to think I'd ever be able to throw those behind… Mom. Dad. How many times I have tried to forget about them, but it's all too strong and realistic for me.

Three months later, they had a law suit—just for who gets to raise me. Mommy smiled right before it, I still remember, and gave me a light kiss on the cheek, telling me that everything would be okay.

-flashback starts—

"_I had done most of the raising and taking care of her, so the responsibility should be with me!" I heard Mommy say from the jury area. I stood on the wooden benches, not knowing what to do. Daddy…or Mommy? Why would Daddy want me? I had always been just a burden to him. _

"_ paid most of her fees, and had done the actual economical raising. He should be able to raise her." Even at this period, Daddy still didn't say a word about me. I couldn't help but feel cold in my heart, and grasped myself for more warmth. _

_More discussing. _

_Break time._

_Mommy hurried down from her place to see me, holding me with both arms, and pulling me into her chest, breaking out into tears. With her sniveling, and not saying a word, I wrap my arms around her as well, just listening to her heartbeat. Daddy is nowhere to be seen anymore. He didn't come see me. _

_The final discussing, and a loud bang on a wooden board is heard._

"—_to the father." _

_The only part that I actually understood. Would that mean…that I would have to live with Daddy? Would that mean…that I wouldn't be able to see Mommy anymore? _

_No. No. No! Mommy was the one who made the best food in the world, her hugs were the most secure in the world, her goodnight prayers made me feel the most religious, her words were the most intelligent. She… she was the best mom possible! _

_Mommy burst into tears, her body leaning on the table that was in front of her, but two workers from Daddy's company came up to me. Their dark sunglasses reflecting back my fragile features, with a sly grin, they each held my hand, hauled me up on their back and began walking past. _

"_Mommy!" I screamed, punching the backs of the men, but they were too strong. They carried me away._

_Mommy!_

_Mommy!_

"_Mommy!" _

_Her last, desperate face was the last time I ever saw her. _

-flashback ends here—

Three weeks later, it was heard that Mommy died. The last words in her will: To give all I have to Yumi—when she is 18 years of age. I was at school chatting with my friends when I heard that from the teacher—that I had to go to the principal's office.

Daddy didn't let me go to her funeral. With a super red face, similar to a red chili, locked my room door from the outside. "Don't you dare come out!" were his words. To keep his words possible, he made a little dog flap that was too small for me to crawl through. Through that flap, he would snuffle some bentous that were bought from the supermarket downstairs.

I stopped going to school.

I couldn't go. Friends stopped calling to ask if I was okay, teachers stopped caring if I was going to school anymore. I was left in a world of blackness, a day where only time is tractable.

Like that, three years past. My voice got higher pitched, my mind became more developed, and my fitness level got worse.

Just as I was waiting for my dinner, I heard the door crash open. Daddy would have never done that. He would have carefully opened the door without a noise, carefully tap his shoes on the mat and then enter without another word. But these men were shouting.

"Anyone here? Anyone a family relative to Mr. Takeshi?"

Daddy died in a car crash, and I was brought out of the room.

I wasn't sad, not to the point that I cried my eyes out, but I wasn't happy either.

He wasn't the best dad ever, but he was the dad I was given. He was strict, had temper-control issues, but he always wanted me to get the best—whether it was for himself or not—he wanted me to be good.

I was given to my mom's mother, since my dad's family didn't want me.

Grandma was always considered to be "odd". She had enough money to get a real job, but she found joy in running that small snack shack she had. Since I couldn't catch up with school anyways, I learned to cook, I learned how to manage the house, and almost became a professional housekeeper for Grandma. But soon, after one year, she legs began deteriorating. She started needing a cane to walk around the house. I tried to treat her, tried to convince her to go to the hospital, but everything that had been on her mouth was "the shack…the shack…" I started helping out. I started memorizing all the prices, and in return for me helping, Grandma had to rest.

I turn around from my spot on the bed, and sit up despite the pain in my stomach. I hear a sudden click from the front door, many muffled footsteps, and it's almost like that scene once again.

"no…no…" I murmur to myself, but there are three knocks on my door, and revealing two people standing at the door.

"Why…are you here…?"


	9. The Yellow Hyacinth 9

Chapter 9

**The Yellow Hyacinth **

Uncontrollably, I sneak under my covers. I don't want anyone to see me like this, I don't want anyone to see me this vulnerable. Especially… not him. Especially not Mukuro-san.

I hear footsteps, closer and closer. It's resonant, it's deep, it's not Grandma's footsteps.

"Kufufu… you're shy?" Mukuro walks closer, I can hear his deep voice, it follows into my ear canals, triggering every nerve in my body. Silent wind chimes add on, how I should be calm, how I should act like a princess now, but my head is bumping, it's beating fast, hard, and loud.

"No! I… I'm fine…" Suddenly, a chill runs up my spine, making me cuddle more into myself, curling up my covers on my body. He keeps on walking forwards, just keeping on laughing his renowned kufufu.

"Oya oya," I felt something pressing down on the covers, and peek my eye out to see. Mukuro was smiling, sitting on the edge of the bed. He looked… so… good. He was so caring… as if feeling a volcano eruption in my face, I hide back into my covers, breathing in and out rapidly.

"That girl—she's a strong one." Grandma's crinkly voice breaks open the silence, and I hear Mukuro's laugh once again.

"I know." He peels open the covers, and stares at my hot red chilly pepper-ed face (yes, maybe that's not a real word now, but some day, it will.)

"Eh?" I attempt to sit up, but his large hand is on my head, pushing me back down in my covers.

"You're going to get cold. Stay in your covers." Mukuro turns away from me, and stares into Grandma's eyes.

"How long has she been like this?"

"One day."

"Her temperature?"

"Thirty-nine."

Mukuro sighed, and walked out of the room with Grandma right behind his heels.

I hear him mutter a bit.

Right… he had work too. He needed to go take care of his followers. And he had said it before, I was just his prey. No one would care for prey, right? But I shake off all those extraneous thoughts.

It just made me happy to know that Mukuro-san was happy, that he was smiling, that he was still that large boss character that I admired.

But I don't hear the door opening, I just hear more and more footsteps, louder, louder. Louder.

My door slides open, and in Mukuro's hand s a large wet towel. It doesn't fit his princely image. He spread it out as if it were a whip, and slaps it onto my forehead. I tingle slightly at the sudden cold, and uncontrollably begin laughing.

"Arigato, Mukuro-san." I smile, and he turns away, muttering, "be quiet and rest."

He turns away, muttering some words to Grandma, then, as he was planning to leave the room, he muttered,

"The snack-shack without you isn't anything anymore…" He turned around with a smile, "I only want my pineapple- seller, so get well soon."

And the door closed.

r-

Reika sat on the couch, hearing the murmuring of Chikusa and Ken in the corners of the room. She curled up in a ball and took out the bag of dry pineapples she had bought the day before.

Munching each, one by one, she got more and more angered…then lament.

Mumu-kun.

There was always a way that this man could ruin her serenity in her words, always a way that he'd make her life, always a way that he'd make her feel ease.

But when he was gone, she had felt nothing similar like this before.

Her life—before Mumu-kun entered it—wasn't this bad either.

"Are you hungry bya? " The blond guy walked over, his tongue sticking out of his mouth. Reika, surprised, looked up. Those two boys never cared about her one bit.

"Nope." Reika smiled, it felt good, in a way, being cared about by him, by anyone else in this world that showed her that she had meaning. As she grinned, she held out her bag of dried pineapples, offering it to Ken.

"Is it good bya ?"

Reika shrugged, then, continued grinning. Ken reached in and grabbed a handful.

"Thanks, I'll buy food later bya." Instead of gulping that handful down himself, Ken walked over to Chikusa, and poured half into his hand, then silently, began eating the pineapples.

Ken…wasn't as abrupt as she had thought. He wasn't as bad as she had thought. She smiled to herself as she continued eating. Maybe if there were other people caring for her here… she could enjoy some parts of it, even without Mumu-kun.

Hopefully, that'd be true.

A few branches twitch outside, and everyone gets on alert. Ken, holding his fangs in his hands, Chikusa, holding his yoyo, and Reika, pulling out her rings in alert.

Seeing that Reika was the closest to the door, she was also the first to get to the door. He saw a boy with brown hair, will flames from his forehead, and Vongola gloves on his hands. She knew Mukuro was in Vongola, but who this man was, and what he wanted with them, she didn't know. It was red alert.

"I'm here, looking for Reika."

"I'm Reika, how can I help you?"

"Heard you were Mukuro's strongest companion, and, as the leader of Vongola, I must test your powers."

"So….it's a fight?"

"Yes. I'd like to get started as soon as possible, as I have many other things to take care of reborn." The boy's face went grim as he muttered, "stupid Reborn." But looked around cautiously as he said those very words.

"I'd be glad to accompany you."

The man took in a deep breath, but the two figures appeared behind Reika.

"Tsunayoshi, what are you doing here?" Chikusa murmured, springing his yoyo.

"Sawada Tsunayoshi! God bya! " Ken stormed in front of Reika.

"Not here to fight you two, I'd like to keep you two nice and safe for the time being. I just needed to test how strong Reika was."

Ken flexed his arms out, narrowed his eyes and glared into Tsuna.

"She's a new member, she still needs to train!"

"Then she can continue training after I test her. I will try to keep my attacks as soft as possible."

Hearing until now, Reika couldn't hold it anymore.

"I'm not that weak!" Reika shouted, walking past Ken. "I'll fight you…"

Reika lied wounded on the ground, huffing desperately. She lifted her hand up in the air, looking at the rings on her fingers.

-flashback starts—

"_Rei-chan, come over here!" The old man's voice echoed into Reika's room, and she leapt up happily, launching herself in the chest of the old man. _

"_Put your finger in this ring." The old man held out a red ring, and Reika slipped it on without another thought. A birthday present? _

_She felt an energy surge up, almost so much that she felt like her chest was going to break open, she began frantically reaching for air, until finally the turmoil stopped. Her chest stopped heaving. She had pointed with her hand at the ceiling, feeling something surge inside of her. But it was trapped. _

"_Call out 'fire' Use your will. Hope for fire." _

_Why would the old man want fire? But Reika couldn't care anymore. Fire…fire…fire.. I want fire… she began concentrating her thoughts, but each time, it would end in a series of giggles. _

"_Do this or else I'll kick you out!" _

_It worked that time. Flames that seemed to appear from her palms broke down the ceiling. But she fainted right after. _

_What this power was…she didn't know until much, much, later._

_-flashback ends—_

"What is this, Reika?"

Reika puffed for little while more until she brought herself to sit up.

"Each ring has a different property. Red for flames, yellow for heat, green for Earth, blue for Water, white for temperature and rope, and the black… I prefer not to ever use that."

"How does it function?"

"It's basically the combination of will power and actual things. For example, for Earth, I need to call out into my brain for the Earth, as the will power begins to energize the ring, there has to be the certain element nearby or else it doesn't work. If there were no plants near here, my green ring wouldn't work. For my blue ring, if there weren't any water near, then it wouldn't work as well."

"Eto, how did you get these rings?"

"The old man that I lived with was an experimenter, I got lost and was abandoned. He brought me up and used me as a test patient. When he finished that first pack, he gave it to me and kicked me out. He said I knew too much already."

"Reika!" She suddenly heard a voice from within, and realized that it was the blond boy, Ken.

"Hai?"

"Are you okay?" He glared at Tsuna, placing his fangs in his mouth. Tsuna sighed and grinned at Reika.

"You're really strong. I'll pass down to the other guardians as well, of course, Reborn too, but now I really need to go. You took me so much longer than I had expected. Well, not like Mukuro was ever clear about what he meant by 'she's somewhat strong.' "

The boy waved, before running off down the street. What an interesting character….

But the leader of Vongola had said she was strong. Strong!

"You baka!" Ken appeared in the doorway, scowling at her. But soon walked out of the room and down the street, waving a hand back at her and shouting out, "I'm getting food!"

Chikusa walked out silently behind him, and sat down beside Reika.

"He's funny."

"Who?"

But Chikusa didn't respond, just sat with her and looked off into the horizon. Shades of red, purple, pink.

Her mind rotated back to the one subject now that there was time to think once again.

Mumu-kun.

He'd still be with Yumi now, having fun, laughing it off.

But Mumu-kun, Reika really wanted him. Just to have fun with him was fine.

bellluv's note:

YAY! Basically no homework in school anymore (hoop hoop!), so I'll try to update as frequently as possible! And… of course, reviews r greatly appreciated~ now… getting back to work…


	10. Lavender Smores 10

Chapter 10

**Lavender Smores**

*snoooooreee *

With a thud, Reika fell off the bed thanks to a certain pineapple head beside her.

*snoooore*

"Mumu-kun!" Reika shouted with all her might, pulling the covers off of Mukuro's chest, yet leaving enough to cover his legs so he wouldn't get a cold.

He lifted up an eye, then instantly closed it, seeing the pale sky outside.

"It's _winter_. It looks dark even at 9AM, Mumu-kun, come on, let's go eat." Reika sighed, then walked to the other side of the bed, and pulled him upwards so he sat up.

**8:56 AM**

"There's still time, Rei-chan, kufufu, I'm sure you'd let me sleep a while more." Finally blinking open both eyes, Mukuro laughed and pulled his sheets above his head once again.

"Mumu-kun..."

Reika was supposed to be exasperated, but instead, she started laughing, giggling at the playfulness of Mukuro. Finally, calming down, she hurried into the bathroom with her change of clothes and toiletries ready. Turning open the tab and watching the clear liquid bolting out, she had an unknown urge to, hmm, release her emotions, and let them bolt out. Not like Mukuro would know, the sound of the tab water was loud enough, and he was asleep anyways.

But Reika didn't want that to awaken Mukuro either.

The normally 'strong' her, leaned against the tiled wall, letting the shrill of the cold slowly make it's way down her spine, and letting it take over the pain in her soul.

Mumu-kun...

But what could she do? Mumu-kun obviously favored Yumi, and even if she tried, it'd be of no use. The way that he looked at her! The way that she looked back. It's obviously...that they...liked each other.

As if finally seeing how pitiful she was, she finally let her body sink to the ground, her cries barely audible against the tab water. She had always been a pain to others-hasn't she? Her parents thought she was a pain. She was a burden to them. And so she got abandoned. The old man, probably thought she was a pain too, no other reason to kick her out. And Mumu-kun. What would Mumu-kun think of?

No matter what he thought of her now, Reika only knew one more thing. She couldn't be the one in between in his affection for Yumi. Then... she'd get detested, wouldn't she? She'd get abandoned-kicked out-homeless, once again.

"Rei-chan?" A few knocks on the door. Finishing her last few snivels, she splashed her face with water, quickly changed, and opened the door-holding her toothbrush.

"What took you so long?" Mukuro came in, rubbing his eyes sleepily. Still startled, all Reika could manage was move aside a little. But the boy didn't find any difference in Reika, one part of her let out a deep breath, while the other, felt like it was getting tortured all again. Lifting her hand up, she finally began brushing her teeth. Harder, harder, harder.

Why couldn't she be the kind that Mukuro liked? A Yumi-kind.

"Kufufu! Five minutes of brushing teeth, ten minutes of brushing hair, three minutes of washing face. Done." The pineapple man gave his creepy smile, and left the bathroom laughing.

With the silence returning to Reika, she smiled to herself in the mirror. _Everything will be fine. I...can't like Mumu-kun. I can't. _

With that, she clicked the light off, and tailed behind Mukuro, who was waiting at the door of the bedroom.

"I want pineapple waffles, Rei-chan~" The man turned to Reika with one of his smiles that always made Reika go crazy. How was she supposed to react to all this? She... was one that couldn't like Mukuro, and yet, she had to endure all the cute actions, all the playfulness from Mumu-kun. But...this could have been a profit too. Being able to experience all these, without needing anything else...just pure, enjoyment.

As they walked out in the streets, Reika was still pondering about this issue when a sudden loud beep rang, as if lightning tearing open the skies of Earth. Even without time to react, she stumbled on the ground, falling onto Mukuro, who already had his arms apart, carefully placing her to the over side of him while the car whirled past. Still gasping, she looked up-seeing the refined features of Mukuro-even more perfect than before.

'No,_ No, No, No Reika! You can't like Mukuro, you know that!' _Reika thought to herself, pinching herself.

But soon, she heard footsteps and a soft girly shrill, "Mukuro-san!"

'Yumi...' Reika thought to herself, smiling sourly. But remembering her role in all of this. She was only a secondary character in their happy ever after, she had to be the one that would support them...or else she would become the evil Queen. No matter what, she wouldn't want the boy she adored so much now-to just disappear.

The man that held her pushed her up, stared at her for a second, and then began walking towards Yumi.

"Rei-chan, you can go to training first."

"Alright, Mumu-kun."

r-

**2:26 PM**

"Mukuro-san!" The blond hair boy shrieked, and Chikusa and I leapt up from our position on the couch in which we were playing a very interesting game of cards.

"Kufufu, I'll train Reika today. Ken and Chikusa, why don't you battle each other?" Seeing the hard glance from Reika to her school, Mukuro laughed again and added, "outside of this building."

"How are we going to train?" Reika tilted her head curiously. She hadn't ever trained with anyone else except for the old man and his rings. And if the fights with Chikusa and Ken counted-then they were of no significance.

Mukuro held his trident, titled it towards Reika, and before she even had time to react, she was tackled down on the ground, a trident pointing at her neck.

"I see."

"You didn't give me time to react. But this time, I'll win." Reika narrowed her eyes and put her red ring on. Mukuro's eye flashed to "1".

Volcanoes burst out of the ground, the heat tangible, but Reika could control the flames that Mukuro had already "imagined" through her guns.

With even more heat and intensity than Mukuro's, she aimed it at him, and even he- Mukuro- backed away a few steps dodging the flames.

"More, Rei-chan." His tone had mockery in it, something that Reika couldn't stand. Yet she knew it too, this man wasn't fighting with all his might.

She couldn't use the flames that he had created anymore. She couldn't use her red ring anymore. Quickly, she switched her blue ring on, and aimed at Mukuro. Closing one eye, she prayed in her head. 'Let there be a pond nearby in which I can use that water. Or a river. A ocean- would be too much for Mumu-kun.'

But what came out was only a small squirt of water that splashed Mukuro's face. He spit some water out.

"We're not at a waterpark, Rei-chan!" His eyes switched to a "4" and he came with more power. Reika fell to the ground once again, a trident at her neck.

"Too weak."

"I can beat you."

"I know."

"..."

"Next time you'll beat me, come on, you must be tired, Rei-chan. The training will pause for today, but you must practice your close combat, distance shots like those that you pulled on me might not always work. But you're not as weak as I imagined." The man lifted his trident and shot out a hand to Reika. She took it gratefully, and with an immense amount of energy, got pulled up to her feet.

The two men staring out the window gaped when Mukuro stared at them, but the pineapple haired man only grinned before turning to Reika once more.

"Let's grab something to eat."

So the two people set off down the road. A normally 'strong' girl blushing her face off, and a playful boy with his grip strong on his trident. But there was another stop down this road, in which a certain girl's shop was located. Would the boy stop for her? Or realize the feelings of the girl beside him? That would be told in a different chapter.

_Mumu-kun...let's value our time together now...because I think I like you, and I won't be able to control it around you... Bye._

**bellluv's note:**

Three chapters for today!~ it's a monday by the way. So I will work hard-yes-but I'm going to rest for a few days...and hopefully be done resting by friday! Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter, and continue supporting all characters! Oh! And, please tell me who you would like Mukuro to go with... :/...


	11. The Snow White Clover 11

**belluv's notes:** hey! sorry for the SUPER late update~~ I've been sleeping my head off and getting ideas! So now here I am! Please enjoy and review~~~

Disclaimer: I don't own KHR

Claimer: I did write this...

_**-story starts here-**_

Yumi wasn't there. As Reika and Mukuro walked through the streets together, only the placid wavering of the breezes were able to be heard. Reika noticed Mukuro's head lift a little as if to glance inside the store to see if anyone was there, but his head quickly turned back to the street as he saw no one was there.

But Reika noticed it all.

"Na, Mumu-kun..." Reika murmured, turning towards Mukuro, "Yumi's a nice girl, right?"

As if without hesitation, Mukuro laughed and responded, "Kufufu~ of course."

Reika's heart thudded to a stop, and like some hidden idea that she always had inside her had been brought out and shoved in her face. _Right... Mumu-kun always liked her anyways. From the first glance and on. _

"Why, Rei-chan?"

Why...right. Why did she even asked him that? She knew the answer anyways. It was like she was wanting to feel the torture in her soul herself.

Mukuro stopped walking and held his trident on his left hand even tighter. "Why, Rei-chan?" Reika only kept on walking, as if not even noticing Mukuro.

"Reika!" Mukuro yelled, almost even mad at her for the first time. "What's wrong? You need to_ tell_ me for me to know!"

That's when Reika stopped moving and turned around to Mukuro, a few tear droplets in her eyes. But as it blended in with the moonlight now shining in, Mukuro did not spot it.

"N-N-Nothing." Reika sniffed a little, then forced a chuckle as she continued, "I think I might have a cold. Let's go home and-"

"Why did you ask me about it?"

"Kohoho... I guess because I want to be...friends with Yumi." Mukuro smiled satisfied at Reika's obviously false explanation, but he didn't ask more. Together, they walked silently under the moonlight as they arrived at the house.

Reika hurried to the fridge, grabbing out some pineapple bentou's that were bought from the supermarket before, and handed one to Mukuro who was already sitting comfortably on the couch. He patted the mat beside him, grinned, and turned on the TV.

Mukuro laughed at whatever was on the TV, smacked the pillow hard as he continued laughing, but Reika just couldn't... care more anymore. Mukuro liked that girl-not her, so as any normal person with any sense, she said it.

"Mumu-kun... I'm going to move."

Mukuro, who had been laughing exasperatedly at the TV show suddenly stopped, turned off the TV, and as if switching personalities, turned to Rei-chan sternly.

"Why."

"Because..." Reika hadn't thought this far yet. She only wanted to move away so she wouldn't be the third person in between the lovey-dovey-ness. That way, she wouldn't have to witness all those events that would only make her, herself feel worse. "Because I..."

"I see."

"It's not that I don't like Mumu-kun!" Reika suddenly exclaimed, but it was like Mukuro had turned sides on her, and now she was in the very very bad side.

"I see, Reika. Do you have a house yet?"

"Not...yet..."

"Then you can stay until you find one. I'm sure I won't be a bother." Mukuro grabbed his bentou and returned to his room, leaving Reika alone.

Why did he get so mad because she was moving? He was supposed to like Yumi, and Reika was sure of it. The way that they talked to each other! Anyone could see it. But why...

Reika ate her bentou in silence, contemplating about all the possibitlies, at last, falling asleep on the couch.

-morning time-

Reika woke up with a blanket on her body, full of Mukuro's scent, and then she remembered Mukuro's cold attitude yesterday.

_I'm sorry Mumu-kun...I'm so sorry. But how could I ever...ever tell you then real reason? _

Mukuro was already packing up his stuff and preparing to leave when Reika had fully awaken.

"Mumu-kun!"

Mukuro turned around, one hand clenching his trident with fierce strength.

"Did you eat already?"

"No."

"Eto, can I make you something?"

"It's alright. I can grab something at the supermarket or the shack."

"But the supermarket is so far away! Just..sit down for a while? I can make you something quick."

Reika was already preparing to make her breakfast when Mukuro continued walking out. When he was outside of the ledge of the door, he murmured, "Why do you care about me now?" and disappeared around the corner. As Reika saw Mukuro walk around the corner, even his shadow slipping away from her, it was like everything broke down.

She collapsed on the chair, those tears that she hadn't seen in such a long time flowed out, and it was like she couldn't do anything else but sniff and wipe her tears. As it continued, her heart kept on grabbing on her, as if trying to suffocate her, but only one clear thought was still in her mind. If Mumu-kun loved Yumi, then she would get out of their way. With that, she hurried out of the door, not caring about her own breakfast and went to the house rental stores to find a suitable house.

r-

"Hello, Miss, how may I help you?" An elderly looking man walked out of the store with an affectionate smile. Reika grinned back and stared at the prices.

"I'd like to find a cheap house near Kokuyo High School, is it possible?"

The elderly looking man smiled, opening the door and welcoming Reika inside. She followed him into the store as a fragrant scent was brought into her nose, and even her mood got slightly better. The old man smiled at Reika's reaction, and brought out a few booklets.

"What price range would you like it for?"

"Um... I don't have quite a lot of money right now, around fifty thousand yen? I might be able to afford slightly more than that... but I'm not so sure. I can try my best though!"

The old man chuckled and took away all the other booklets except for one. He tapped on the cover as he slid it over across the table to Reika.

"There is in an apartment area, but it is quite a large space! Around two hundred mentors squared, there's a living room, dining room, two separate rooms as well as one kitchen and one bathroom."

"Wow!" Reika grinned as she listened and finally, she only had one question left, "what about the price?"

"It's only sixty thousand yen!"

Sixty thousand. Of course Reika had that much money in her purse right now, but still, she didn't have a salary, and quick enough, she'd have no money. She could find some assassination jobs, and each would give her around three hundred thousand yen. Perfect.

"Can you take me to see it?"

m-

Last night, Mukuro had been struck with the weirdest question of all. The best friend that he finally told everything to said that she wanted to move. And without a reason! That must mean that she didn't like him, no matter how much she tried to deny it. Mukuro had enough experience to know that a lot of people thought that he was a weird one and Reika might just be another one of them. How much he didn't want that to be true...but his soul and heart just told him otherwise. Weirdly, he felt a sort of longing to the usual cooking Reika would make him, but now Reika wasn't his, and not even his prey anymore. He thought of Yumi and grinned. There were pineapple sweets there as well!

However, when he almost approached there, he almost turned right beside him and said, "Wait, Rei-chan, you go to training first." But then he realized that no one was there. Right. He had ditched her this morning, ditched her cooking as well as her accompaniment. But... he didn't want to. He wanted Reika to stay. But who was he? He was Mukuro Rokudo, someone who didn't go ask girls to stay with him. Prey come all by themselves.

"Mukuro-san!" Yumi quickly ran out of the shack, her long black hair waving around her, ethereally beautiful. Her hands waved around her body as she tried to run as hard as she could, only making Mukuro laugh.

"Yumi-chan~kufufu~"

"Mukuro-san!" Yumi finally ran up to Mukuro, panting slightly, but grinning all the way.

Mukuro-san...? As if suddenly remembering, he remembered the "Mumu-kun..." Feeling a weird sort of longing, Mukuro shook his head, trying to shake it away.

Why did he feel this sort of longing? He was the one who ditched Reika...and yet, he still felt that weird sort of longing. What was this? And...what would it bring?

**belluv's note:**

It's 10 AM here! Yeah~ hopefully you enjoyed it, and I might update more chapters in the afternoon so you know, yeah. :) hopefully you enjoyed this chapter, and again, please review and tell me who you like so far! THANKS!


	12. The Quivering Anemone 12

**Chapter 12**

******The Quivering Anemone **

"Have you been feeling better?" Mukuro asked, his pineapple hair gliding around thanks to the wind, and as a huge breeze came, it stuffed his mouth full of his hair.

"kdfajndskajfnsdf" Mukuro managed, and the girl in front of him laughed. Her eyes still as crystals, reflecting back the sun, the clouds, the small shifting wind as well as his own features. Her hair moved along with the wind as well, but instead of it getting into her mouth, it brushed by her neck oh so delicately.

"Haha, Mukuro-san, have you had breakfast yet?" The girl leaned on the counter again, her right hand already grabbing the pineapple snacks that had been out of stock just yesterday. The pineapple haired man smiled, took the snacks gracefully and pulled out his remaining change.

"Only have 100 yen… kufufu…"

"Eh? Mukuro-san!" Yumi looked around slightly worried, but then turned to Mukuro again with a smile on her face.

"Kufufu…go men…I'll bring the money over tonight, alright?"

As if scared? or more like excited, Yumi blushed with a slight raspberry color, then raised her hand to wave Mukuro goodbye. Her scent just flowing through the air… Japanese cherry blossoms… He forced his legs to continue walking as he remembered that one person that he kept on trying to forget.

Hibari…

And then another person. Rei-chan… What would she do then? If she was forced to remember of her parents whose outcome she doesn't even know? Would she feel that thud in her heart like Mukuro's and be hindered by it? He grunted as he knew the answer by heart anyways. She was never pulled back by her emotions from what he had known, it was always the thing that propelled her more. Did she not have pain like Mukuro did? She did. She had been betrayed just as much as Mukuro did. Just as he was planning to continue thinking, he stopped.

What was he doing, thinking about Rei-chan! She was gone now, only an apprentice, none more than that. They didn't live together anymore, they didn't need to feel that…care…anymore. So why was it… that he had this thud? Was it envy and respect? Thinking that, Mukuro arrived at the training center only to find two people there. Chikusa and Ken.

"Where's Reika?" Mukuro knew to use Rei-chan's full name just like Rei-chan always said Mukuro-san in front of others. Rei-chan… was that a nickname too? Was he now…forbidden…to use it? He threw that behind his head as he waited for Chikusa's answer.

"I don't know, Mukuro-san, we thought she'd come with you."

Where was she? That silly girl… did she think that just because she moved away that she could skip out on Mukuro's training? That was not acceptable. Not acceptable at all.

"Mukuro-san! There has been assassination requests, Reika-chan should come soon…" Ken hurried up to Mukuro, holding an armful of pieces of paper from small to big, horrible to refined quality of paper.

"Kufufu… a lot…" Mukuro had to throw the girl's things out of his mind and flipped through pieces of paper. Rei-chan would love these…opportunities for money… but then he found himself thinking of her again. She had just been prey… right? Or was she even more than that now?

r-

Reika slid her card down the machine, and with a ka-ching she knew the business was done. She would have her own house that she would live in. The man grinned and the old man beside patted Reika's shoulder. The three high five-d despite the difference in their ages, and two of the three waved good bye and while chattering, left the house empty.

The only decorations in the house where two candle stands on the sides of the stairways leading upstairs, the dining room had been not cleaned properly in quite some time, but the other rooms were in good condition. This was good enough for a cheap house, and more like only what she could afford.

She turned around her wrist to see her watch, and the burning numbers from it. 13:02.

"OH SHIZ!" She slammed the front door shut, clutching the keys as she ran out in a hurry, almost tripping over the stairs in the apartment and landed on her knees at the ground level.

"Ouch..." She murmured, but again, remembering the time, fought against the own beating in her heart to get to the training center. Mukuro would be mad...very mad. Now that he thoughts she hated him, perhaps this action of being late would also be considered as... disrespect? Darn.

She swung open the front door to Kokuyo High School and hurried within, seeing three bodies on the couches, and each reading a sheet a paper...

_Did I get in the wrong school...? _Reika thought to herself, but recognizing the tattered furniture, she knew otherwise.

"Ken? Chikusa? Mukuro-san?" She murmured, walking closer. But it seems that they were too absorbed in _reading, _that they didn't hear.

"Ken? Chikusa? Mukuro-san!" She raised her voice, walking closer and closer, but they only kept on blinking their eyes and reading. As she approached them, Ken's mouth suddenly moved, making no noise, but more like gulping down joyously. With no time to react, Ken was already jumping around Reika, the piece of paper flowing down somewhere in the room, and exclaiming, "ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND YEN!"

One hundred thousand...yen...?

Not knowing what was going on, Reika looked past the jumping Ken towards Chikusa and Mukuro-san. Chikusa placed the paper down very slowly, fixed his glasses and looked at Reika. "Three hundred thousand..."

Three hundred thousand...?

The only "normal" person would be Mukuro-san then...if Reika hadn't seen what had happened next.

With a dark face and evil eyes, in the corner some awkward, "kufufufufufu...twenty million... two million...kufufufufu...kufufufu..." Seeing the "haunted" Mukuro, Chikusa and Ken backed away, but it seems that only Reika noticed the important part in his words. kufufu + _**twenty million**_? That would be enough for a lot of rents!

But Reika, has if suddenly realizing who this man was in front of her, what he had thought of her..and the incident this morning, she hesitated/ Did she hate her now? Just like he thought she hated him? But he doesn't know... doesn't know what Reika had been thinking the entire time. How much she wanted to hug him, to tell him that she adored him too, to tell him that we'd do all the missions together. But she knew that it wasn't possible either. Mukuro liked Yumi...and only Yumi. She was a nothing? Perhaps the only reason that he even cared was because of the food that Reika had made him.

Mukuro hearing footsteps, looked up, and flashed the piece of paper with the exciting title, twenty million yen. But then as if suddenly waking up, realized who was in front of her. A sort of grief, mournfulness flew into his eyes, his heart, his soul, tarnished all that was joyous, and only an arid plant like Mukuro was left sitting.

"Mukuro-san..."

"I know it...kufufu...Reika-chan, I know that you don't like me..."

"It's not...that I don't like you." Reika managed. She couldn't say Oh Mukuro do you know how much it hurts to see you walk away? How much it hurts to be the one walking away? But how happy I'd be to see you smile and be happy? She couldn't say any of that... it'd only confuse Mukuro.

"Kufufu...you don't need to appease me..."

"It's not that! Mukuro-san...let's...talk. Let's talk after training...let's have a long long talk..." Reika managed. What she would say, how she would say it she didn't know. All she knew was she wanted Mukuro to know that she didn't hate him, and that Mukuro wasn't that weird thing that he called himself.

Whether this long long talk would work...Reika didn't know either.

**belluv's note**: Hey! I'm here again~~~ its 11:30 AM here...figured that i have more inspiration in the morning! And today's friday so it's update day! :D Hope you all enjoy this chapter and again... try to decide who you all like ! Thanks!


	13. The Flourishing Filbert 13

**Chapter 13**

The Flourishing Filbert~

- chapter starts here-

Reika silently walked out of the room, her face pale and stern, her hands clenched in a tight ball, and if one looked very closely, very, very, closely, one could see the tears filling up her tear duct.

_I'm sorry Mukuro. That I'm such an irritable, choleric, bad-tempered, horrible girl... I don't deserve your consideration either!_

Reika and Mukuro kept on meandering around the park, not having any specific place in mind, nor any thought that needed to press out. In between them was only the delicate breeze and drafts of the wind, and the gentle sways of the long willow tree branches.

Reika halted in front of one branch, and held it up in one hand, turning her shoulder slightly down so she faced Mukuro.

"I'm sorry I'm like this."

Hearing Reika's sudden apology, Mukuro paused his footsteps and stared at Reika's eyes. Right. He had never noticed Reika's eyes as much. They weren't as big or dazzling or shiny like Yumi's were, but they were so fierce, medium sized, and always burning with flames.

"What happened to you?" Mukuro muttered, suddenly remembering the first time he saw Reika. How fierce, how recalcitrant and agitated she had been. What had made her into this… tearing girl in front of him? Did he … himself, cause this?

He remembered the first time Reika had challenged Ken and Chikusa, how they had lost, how Reika had been dizzy and Mukuro took care of her, how Reika first moved into the house.

So it's happening again.

He caused another person to change, to become someone entirely different. Hibari… just like Hibari? That always so obedient Hibari turned into that stubborn Hibari in the end that didn't let him see the last touch.

He was cursed.

Yes.

That had to be the reason because there was no other reason that could change two perfect people.

"Hen.. nothing…" Reika turned over, another grin flashing on her face, baffling Mukuro.

She had always been like this? Showing him the optimistic side, showing her the grins and happiness. For the second time in his entire life, he wanted to protect someone. He wanted to protect someone's smiles, grins.

"Don't say sorry, you don't need to be sorry. It has always been me." Mukuro turned around, a bitter smile pasted on his face.

"Hey, remember that day we bought pineapple deserts?"

"Kohoho, we ate pineapples every day~" Reika smiled, her hair flowing behind her back. Even this…girl could be elegant. No. Mukuro laughed at himself again. She was always so elegant. Graceful. She could fight off anyone and yet would still tear up for someone like him.

"Rei-chan, move back."

"Why, Mumu…"

"Because I said so." Mukuro grinned, usually Reika would laugh hard at this, but this time she only stared confused.

"You're always like this… Mumu… you make me feel so good…and then I would suddenly remember I'm not the one for you." Reika turned around with her back facing Mukuro. She gave one last smile, before disappearing within the willow trees.

Mukuro wanted to call her back. Tell her, "How do you know you're not the one?" But he didn't. Ever since he was small, he was like this, wasn't he? e was always blamed, and no matter what he explained, they never believed him. Gulping down all his guilt, wants, and wonders, he turned around, walked back through the willow trees that now reflected more of a sense of loneliness.

He had always thought before. Alone does not mean lonely, but this time he realized, you can be lonely when you are alone.

*ring~~~*

Mukuro's spongebob ringtone suddenly sounded, and startled, he almost bonked himself on the stump of a tree. He laughed coldly at himself, when had he gotten so clumsy? But still dug his phone out of his pocket, and pressed the green button.

"Hello?"

He heard a sigh of relief on the other side. A girl's voice. When he dug out his phone, he didn't even bother looking at the name, but now that he paid attention, he realized it was the other girl that had been waiting for him this whole time. Yumi.

"Yumi-chan?"

"Mukuro-san! You're okay... gomen gomen... I was so worried about you!"

"Mm? Why?"

"Oh...um..."

Silence from the other side of the phone, Mukuro let his eyes wander around as he thought hard.

"It's okay if you forgot... I mean, you wouldn't care about it anyways. Hehe... "

"What is it, Yumi-chan?"

"Nothing, really, bye!"

And the phone went dead.

He walked in silence on the way back to the house. He got the only two girls who had ever paid attention to him mad, heh. That was his 'ability'.

He slowly unlocked the door, ready to face the darkness that awaited him. But his eyes widened as he saw the unknown package on the living room table.

It was a delicate box, and the pineapple odor was already overwhelming. He smiled, but realized that there was also a key and a note beside it.

It said:

_Mumu-kun, _

_I was wrong. I couldn't forget you, but I know that you are meant to be with Yumi, you love her, don't you? I don't want to be that third person that steals away both yours and her happiness. _

_I was walking by and I suddenly realized that I still had the key to this house. I don't need it anymore, I already have a new house. I flipped through the refrigerator and found nothing in there except some pineapple juice. You don't know how to take care of yourself, do you? You dummy. On the table is some of the pineapple deserts I made you. _

_I have another surprise for you, open the refrigerator! Enjoy it, Mumu-kun. _

_I really had a lot of fun the days I've had here, and you really brought me happiness that I had never experienced... ever. _

_However, if you need anything, or if I accidentally took something from your household... you can come find me at XXth, XXX road, XX floor. _

_Dummy, take care of yourself, if you can't, ask Yumi too. I'm sure she's a really nice girl. _

_Bye... Mumu-kun. _

_- Reika (Rei-chan as you would say)_

Reading this, Mukuro's eyes started getting watery, but he pressed that down, placed his trident and keys down to open the delicate box.

Homemade pineapple pie.

His heart throbbed as he held the keys that Reika had placed down, then held it in his fist as he looked back around the room.

Then, as he fast walked towards the door, one very small droplet of salt water fell, and tainted the tiled floor that had once held so many weary and gloomy memories.

_Rei-chan, why are you so stupid? _

author's note:

OMG IM SO SORRY! (japanese style kneeling down+ bowing)... so ... I updated! :D umm... yeah... illl try to update as fast as I can from now on... zerokei18, me will be very diligent from now on! :D Anyways, hope you guys enjoyed this chapter!


	14. The Winsome Lilac 14

**Chapter 14**

-chapter starts here—

Mukuro slammed open the door, taking a long yet deep sigh. Was it because of sadness, joy, confusion, any of that? He laughed, when had he gotten so... befuddled at anything? He took his first step out. Mm, the day that Reika had first come into the house. It had been so surprising, yet it made Mukuro felt a sip of...excitement as well? Second step out. The times where Reika was fighting. Elegant, strong, and nevertheless, that same clouded up expression that he himself used to have. It always gave him the urge to clear up her eyes, to let them stare at him, and let his own...way to influence her. And just then, her eyes had cleared, they weren't that same bold dark eyes that had stared at him the first time they met, it was shining, yes, shining, as if her eyes could take on any sort of pain that Mukuro was experiencing, and nullify it. Reika.

That girl wasn't perfect, no. She wasn't cute, she wasn't slim and delicate, she wasn't any of that sort. Yet whenever she stared at him, whenever she smiled, whenever she turned around and stalked away, Mukuro felt that...thumping. Not from his heart, no, but from his mind. His mind had been contaminated by this girl. Yet maybe contaminated is a harsh term, maybe...purify is more appropriate. Yes, that girl, though she had been though almost all the same disasters as Mukuro, she was still, well, on the bright side of things.

Keeping that girl in mind, Mukuro took a left turn, and scurried down the concrete road, small birds all turning their heads slightly crooked as they saw this figure storming down the street. Mukuro clenched his fists, and speeded up his pace. Faster. Faster. Faster. Almost slamming an old lady down, and murmuring "gomen", Mukuro finally arrived on the road of the dessert shop, where he knew that food-loving girl must be.

Rei-chan.

Rei-chan.

Rei-chan!

As he kept on thinking of that name, that name to seemed to have engraved itself into Mukuro's own throbbing center, his head became blurrier, his hands began trembling and even his legs began speeding up.

As his mind, legs, arms, body began trembling, Mukuro thought to himself, "Kufufu… that Rei-chan has got to pay, for making my body so excited, for making my mind as excited as this. And the fee will be…to have to stay with me, forever and ever, to never leave me…ever….ever…" With that in mind, he smirked and finally halted in front of the dessert shop. On the front window, tens of small desserts perched of all different kinds, chocolate pudding, chocolate cake, pineapple pudding, pineapple cake, pineapple eclairs...

He slammed open the door, opening his mouth gasping for air, his chest now throbbing from all the fast walking that he had been doing, but remembering what he was going to do, and how awkward he must've looked like, he calmed himself, forcing a smile to the old lady that was behind the counter, a small apron with pineapple designs engraved on it.

"Excuse me, did you see a sort of tall girl with a ponytail up? Her name's Reika." Mukuro stuttered, the shop owner looked at him in amusement, then burst out laughing, hands covering her mouth.

"Another admirer of Reika-chan here? She's in the back… go ahead. And good luck." Her raspy voice instructed, with a slight chuckle at the end.

Another? Mukuro smiled, gave a small exhale, and closed his eyes. Taking long strides, he lifted the curtain to see the girl curled up on a tired couch, taking nibbles from pineapple bread. As she heard the commotion, she lifted her head, and slowly, her eyes widened, and the ends of her mouth began lifting, as if a crescent expanding.

"Mumu-kun?" Her voice, energetic as always, as if always ready to have some fun, as if always ready to...make Mukuro feel better, as if she were always there.

"I'm sorry with that incident with Yumi… she's good, but she's not the one for me. And… I've come to realize…you know, that I needed a girl who was in love with pineapples." Mukuro began.

Reika lifted her eyebrows crooked in Mukuro's awkward description, "um….."

And Mukuro, finally realizing what he had burst out, exclaimed, "I mean, I mean , she's not perfect for me, but you are. I just…don't know how to explain it… I'm supposed to be this strong, fearless character, and… you. You just make me smile, make me feel warm, make me feel like I can forget about who I am, forget about who I'm trying to be and all that. And when I see you, no matter when you're strong, when you're teary, whenever I see you, I realize, I have that urge to take care of you, maybe bully you a bit, but that's a privilege only for me. I don't want anyone else to touch you. Do you…understand? I know, I know, I sound like the weirdest person ever, but I just wanted to say that. And you, for making me feel like this…should pay for it."

Reika laughed, her shoulders shaking and her hands clutching her stomach, "Mumu-kun, I… how do you want me to pay for it? Life-long pineapples?"

Mukuro laughed as well, a real laugh. One that made his shoulders loose, let his emotions out, and pulled the girl off the couch and into his arms.

"Life-long pineapples, and life-long you."

Reika smiled, standing up, and Mukuro's hands reached out, pulling the girl's shoulder into his chest.

"Mumu-kun..."

"Rei-chan..."

And so they melted, together, under the witness of the pineapple bread that was left on the tired couch, it's corners nibbled off.

- weird side story time!-

"Kufufufuu~"

"Kohohoho~"

"You have such a weird laugh."

"Hey! You have the weird one, who laughs like, Ku. Fu. Fu. Fu."

"Well who laughs like . . You're not santa."

"_ no pineapple bread for the rest of the week!"

"No, no ! Rei-chan~~~ come over here~~~~"

end-

author's note:

hope you guys liked the ending! And sorry for the SUUUUPER late update :P hahaha….please leave reviews w


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